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THE UNIVERSITY 
GF ILLINOIS 


LIBRARY 


ove 
D'72e 


Digitized by the Internet Archive 
In 2011 with funding from 
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign 


http://www.archive.org/details/earlyherdsmen0Odopp 


THE 
FARITY MicRIDSMIEN 


Jndustrial and Soctal History Series 


Ry KATHARINE ELIZABETH DOPP, Ph. D. 


f The Place of Industries in Elementary Education 


Book I. THE TREE-DWELLERS. THE AGE OF FEAR. 
Illustrated with a map, 14 full-page and 46 text drawings in half-tone by 
Howarp V. Brown. Cloth. Square 12mo._ 158 pages. 
hor the primary grades. 


Book Il. THE EARLY CAVE-MEN. THE AGE OF COMBAT. 
Illustrated with a map, 16 full-page and 71 text drawings in half-tone 
by Howarp V. Brown. Cloth. Square 1r2mo,_ 183 pages. 
for the primary grades. 


Book II]. THE LATER CAVE-MEN. THE AGE OF THE CHASE. 
Illustrated with 27 full-page and 87 text drawings in half-tone by Howarp 
V. Brown, Cloth. Square 12mo. 197 pages. 
for the primary grades. 

Book IV. THE EARLY SEA PEOPLE. FIRST STEPS IN THE CON- 
QUEST OF THE WATERS. Illustrated with 21 full-page and 110 text 
drawings in half-tone by Howarp V. Brown and Kyouer InuKar. Cloth. 
Square 12m0. 224 pages. 
for the intermediate grades. 


Book V. THE EARLY HERDSMEN. FIRST STEPS IN TAMING THE 
GRASS-EATING ANIMALS. Illustrated with 24 full-page and 74 text 
drawings in half-tone by Howarp V. Brown and Louts JENSEN. Cloth. 
Square 12mo. 232 pages. 

For the intermediate grades. 


ae 


Then he led the men and hoys out on the high table-land and captured 
a flock of wild sheep 


i ers aN rv 


Form 


ABEW I DOPP 


erly Instructor and Lecturer 


the Extension Division of the 


University of Chicago 


Aa Etay WA Bik ( Apel 
NEW YORI LQ 


Copyright, 1923, by 
KATHARINE ELIZABETH Dopp 
E-ntered at Stationers’ Hail 


Made in U.S.A. 


HIS volume, the fifth number of the ‘‘Industrial and Social 
History Series,”’ is intended to portray the life of man when 
he took the first steps in taming the sheep, the cow, and the 

goat. That these steps were not taken without the pressure of 
hunger is undoubted. Tradition is rich in allusions to hunger, 
famine, scarcity of game, floods, pestilence, and other conditions 
which cause crises 1n social life. Any one of such crises is bound 
to have a profound effect upon the life of a people. The weaker 
clans, under such conditions, lag behind and possibly disappear, 
while the stronger, braver, and more intelligent clans are better 
able to grapple with a new situation and invent ways of meeting 
its difficulties. Heretofore inventions had taken the form of the 
conquest of fire and the discovery of its uses to mankind, new and 
improved weapons and devices for hunting and trapping wild game, 
improved tools with which to fashion weapons of unshaped mate- 
rials, devices for travel and transportation by land and by sea. 
Invention, too, had been expressed in the division of labor between 
the sexes and in elementary forms of codperation in industrial 
activities as well as in the chase. 

The inventions which characterize the period with which this 
volume deals were of such great social significance as to mark a 
new epoch in social progress. For, when man devised the ways 

17 


5SBOS7L 


8 The Preface 


and means of taming grass-eating animals, he marked out the path 
which left savagery behind him; he led the way to the pastoral 
stage, or the period of barbarism. 

Like all epoch-making inventions, those which ushered in the 
epoch of barbarism were a gradual growth from small beginnings, 
the significance of which was not realized by the people of the age. 
Each step was important, however, for each was a necessary part 
of one great whole. It is because these steps were of the utmost 
importance, and because until recently there has been no demand 
that they have a place in our educational curriculums, that they 
are given special emphasis in this volume. The established life 
of man as a herdsman will be treated in the next volume. Here 
the purpose is to portray the conditions which forced man to 
emerge from savagery and establish friendly relations with the 
grass-eating animals, giving them care and protection in exchange 
for a regular supply of milk and an occasional supply of meat. 

In the early stages of human progress, as well as in more recent 
times, we find man more specialized in his occupations than woman. 
This in part accounts for the fact that in many instances it is woman 
who takes the first steps in finding the way to a new epoch, and 
that man does not take over the work until the foundation is well 
laid. Not until this is accomplished does man take charge of the 
occupation and develop its technique. 

It is doubtless true that wherever grass-eating animals are pres- 
ent, they are brought under domestication in the course of time. 
The purpose of the ‘“‘ Industrial and Social History Series,’’ however, 
is to give the generalized history of the progress of our own race. 
The question thus arises as to when and where our ancestors first 
domesticated the grass-eating animals. Many answers have been 
given to this question. The older ethnologists pointed to Asia as 
the cradle land of the people who developed the Aryan language, 
and stated that the migrations for the most part were to the west 


The Preface 9 


and north. More recently well-known authorities, among whom 
Daniel Brinton, an American, and Canon Isaac Taylor, an English 
ethnologist, may be cited, have answered the question quite differ- 
ently. They state that Europe was the home of the undivided 
Aryans at the time when they passed from the period of savagery 
to the pastoral stage. They claim that the ancestors of modern 
Europeans did not come from Asia with their flocks and herds, but 
that they belonged originally to the Continent of Europe and 
domesticated the grass-eating animals they found on their own 
hunting grounds. 

It matters little to the child of today whether he knows the 
precise spot on our planet where our ancestors lived when they 
made the transition from savagery to barbarism. It matters 
little that he know whether the migrations of the undivided Aryans 
from their cradleland were to the west and north or to the east and 
south. It matters still less that he know the skull formation of 
the various types. But it matters a great deal that he know the 
foundations laid by our ancestors in establishing a higher form of 
culture. It is well for the child of the present age to know some- 
thing of his debt to the past. It is well for him to know the social 
significance of epoch-making inventions. It is well for him to 
feel a spirit of kinship with those peoples of the past that have so 
largely contributed to the well-being of all succeeding ages. 

According to Isaac Taylor there were four racial types in Europe 
during the Neolithic age. In addition to the ancestors of the 
Scandinavians, treated in earlier volumes, there were the Iberians, 
a short, dark people with long, narrow heads; the Ligurians, a short, 
dark people with broad and round heads; and a tall, light, brachy- 
cephalic people, the Celts of philology, who occupied the greater 
part of Central Europe, the valleys of the Danube and its tribu- 
taries, and the great steppes of Russia. It is this last type, desig- 
nated by well-known ethnologists as the undivided Aryan, which 


10 The Preface 


is chosen as the subject of this volume. It was this people who 
developed the prehistoric Aryan speech during the Neolithic period. 
This primitive language became widely extended through migra- 
tions as well as by conquests. <As different groups became sepa- 
rated from the parent stock, dialects were formed which became 
the bases of new languages, yet each retained the root words of 
the primitive mother tongue. These primitive root words may 
still be found in those languages of India and Europe which were 
originally derived from the prehistoric Aryan language. Their 
study by philologists has thrown a great light on the hfe of those 
early times. 

Northern Switzerland and the Bavarian plateau are the 
geographical areas selected for the home of the people represented 
at this time. In the next volume the scene will shift to the valley 
of the Danube and thence to the great steppes of Russia, where a 
common language was formed. 


January, 1923 KATHARINE E. Dopt 


Preface 
Contents. . ; 
List of Illustrations 


THE EARLY HERDSMEN 


FIRST STEPS IN TAMING THE GRASS-EATING ANIMALS 


PAGE 


How Little-beaver Got a New Name 

After Several Years ; 

The Leaders Return from a Mee ting 
of the Tribe 

On to the Foothills 

How the People 
Foothills .. 

What the Men Brought Home from 
the Mountains 

Why the People 
Song of a Bird 

How Many-dogs Captured a Mother 
Goat . 

How the People Treated the Mother 
Goat . 

Why the People Prized the Flesh of 
an Eagle... 

Why the People Were ‘Frightened at 
the Screaming of a Raven . 
Why the People Feared the 

Would Fall ; 
Why the Herds Became Smaller 
Why the People Moved down the 
River Valley . 
What the Women 
Woodlands. 
How Tether- eg Learned to Milk the 
Cow 

How the Women Pre pared for Winter 

Why the People Were Frightened 
One Dark Night : 

Queer Mistakes about the Migr ition 
of Birds 


Camped ‘at. the 


Listened ‘to “the 


Sky 


Found in the 


How the People Lived in Their Win- 


ter Home 
How the People E xplained the Dark 
Days of Winter ; 
How the People Protected the Teth- 
ered Creatures during a Storm 


Suggestions to Teachers 


110 


7 
II 
12 
PAGE 
When Famine Came to the Land 112 
Why the People Uttered Complaints 118 
Tether-peg Tells Her Woes to the 
Trees and Rocks : 4 
Why the People Rejoiced 2 4-130 
What the People Did on a Dark 
Night . . 134 
What the Men Found in a Ravine _ 138 
Why the People Welcomed the First 
Swallow . I4I 
Why the People Feared the Earth 
Would Withhold Her Fruits 146 
How Cruel Winter Was Fooled 150 
The Return of the Herds. . .  . 156 
How the People Spent the Next 
Summer 160 
What Hap] yened When Drag- -a-load 
Tethered a Calf... 165 
How Tether-peg Pointed Out a W ay 
through the Mountains 170 
How the Cattle Were Driven through 
a Mountain Gap 175 
How the Eagle Tribe Moved toa 
High Tal sle-land . 179 
How the People Lived on ‘the Table- 
land. - . 184 
How the Peoy le Tethered Two Cows 
andaCalf . . .« « « « « 189 
How the Birds Answered Tether- 
pég’s Questions . 194 
What Happened When Little-Bear 
Found a Calf ae: 195 
Hooker and Brockle-face .  . 203 
How Little-bear and Pick-a-tree 
Tamed the Calves 210 
How the Women and Children Be- 
came Goatherds... 214 
To Whom do the Flocks and Herds 
Belong? 220 
227 


[11] 


FULL PAGE 


PAGE 


Then he led the men and boys out on 
the high table-land and captured a 
fiock of wild sheep 

There was a mad chase that day over the 
rocky pasture : 

Before Little-beaver was full-grown, he 
had a pack of dogs 

“Where is Mother?” asked Day's-eye 

when she looked all around and could 
not find her mother — . 

With song and dance they “ greele d the 
birds and the budding trees... 

“Make a pitfall for the wild bulls” 

He picked his way down the rough trail 

A raven came flying and screaming 
right over their heads 

First one and then another lif ted up his 


head. When they arose, they stepped 
cautiously. They listened to every 
sound . 


They followed the steps of the slow- 
moving cattle as they fed on their way 
down the valley a ee 

Men and dogs could now he seen com- 
ing through the Hin Jaontoan 

“Hail, hail, rosy Dawn! atl, kindly 
light!” 


IIe trained her to stand on her hind 
feet and beg for a bone 
“The cuckoo ts calling” 

An Eskimo toy bear ali a harness 

She hitched the dogs to the tent poles on 
which she had tied her pack 

A wooden food tray 

A water basket 


Fro: itispiece 


14 


Is 


gs 


PAGE 


They were happy in trying to make 
the sun shine and ee the earth with 
light, 

“T's worse than a "pack ‘of “hungry 


wolves” 

Pheg lifted their voices. They cried 
out. They uttered pitiful com- 
plaints 


They lighted torches. ” They blew horns. 
They made a big clatter Pe 

“The cattle are coming! The cattle 
are coming!” shouted Many-dogs 


The cattle had heard the bellowing of the’ 


calf. They coming at full 
speed. : 

Many-dogs went ahead with the charm 

At last they reached the mountain gap 
and paused by a stream of fresh 
water ae 

The men set dogs on the cattle 

In this way the wild cow was brought 
into camp ; 

“He fights for it,” replied ‘Little-bear. 
“Tie drives other bulls away" 

“Shame! Shame!” cried the people, 
pointing toward Eat-well and Do- 
little eR a oe a be a 


were 


ft ee 


16 


2I 


A decorated 7% 
A water jar. 
The children piped and danced all the 
way. 
“It's a noble hird,” said “Many-dogs 
as he stroked the eagle's feathers 
They ran to Tether-peg and cried out, 
“Don't let them do it!” = ae 


vater jar 


108 


115 


Illustrations 13 
PAGE PAGE 
She tried to break her tether =... 52S dhe big white bird came flapping its 
Many-dogs had many misgivings Wines. . 146 
about killing the eagle 54 Pussies s pee ped oul from the stens of the 
Making a stone axe 57 willows 150 
A polished stone axe. 58 Flocks of wild geese 153 
The goat jumped and began to fight 97 «=A white crane 154 
The women gathered taglocks of wool A cooking pot. 156 
from the bushes 72. The leader of the flock gave a shrill 
A green wood pecker 76 whistle and bounded up the trail . 162 
“Tt’s acalf!” shouted Litile-bear . 78 She let the lamb run to its mother 164 
The calf sprang upon tts feet. It tried “When are you coming for a 
to get away Se ey eco asked Big-bear ryt 
“Keep guard here toda y,’ " said Tether- “The way leads through a gap ‘between 
peg. 82 those rugged peaks” . . 174 
The acorns and nuts are e safe from the ‘There are sheep on the hills, "said 
rain and snow ro) Gray-wolf 182 
Digging sticks 87. The hans dressed in their eoal- skins, 
A root pick 88 looked like two wild goats .  . 188 
A basket granary 90 The calf jumped up and pawed the 
An unfinished cooking fot . 93 ground. sa oe ss TOO 
Bean geese. . 100 She pushed, she pulled, she kicked, she 
The children flapped their arms and gored, she jumped, she pawed, she 
played they were rooks : 103 hawled 191 
They swept the snow from ihe Sols Big-crow caught sight “of aia wolves 
where the animals were tethered 104 sneaking after a cow . . oe) 193 
The creatures shivered with the cold 110) ‘Lay down your weapons,’ said the 
Making a shelter for the calf 114 wise woman. “It 1s not right for 
The raven looked down uae the tree clansmen to quarrel” 195 
and cawed 116 An Eskimo sled 196 
A two-pointed stone chisel 120.) A man chopping 197 
Anearthen food tray . . . . . 120 Asledge. . . . . . . ) .) . 197 
“Too long have you withheld your The boys pulled one way and the calf 
fruits from a barren land” 126 pulled another 200 
“Play, daughters of the 7 woodlands!’ “There she goes!” 206 
cried Tether-peg 128) The men seized Hooker and threw her 
A hooper swan . Jr rae ee LO fo the ground a Wied ter 38200 
“Pull, my good dogs! Pull together!” 132 Brindle and Brownie pulled their 
A magpie had come to the camp 135 tethers [hie eg) x OT 
“Bird of night! Come not to our They frisked, they frolicked about the 
dwellings!” 136 pen 212 
Little nuthatc hes ‘be gan lo whisile 139) ©6She was out of ihe camp and « away to 
Every dog im the pack 7 vas put into the hills before he could overtake her 215 
harness. .140 A flute 216 
Thev leaped, they danced for joy 143. A sling : a 217 
“The swallow is here!” 144‘ Let the wolf's jaz us be closed” 221 


There was a mad chase that day over the rocky pasture PAGE 47 


Ite ree LY “be RSV IN 


FIRST STEPS IN TAMING THE GRASS-EATING ANIMALS 


I 
How Little-beaver Got a New Name 


Before Little-beaver was four years old, his mother gave 
him a puppy. He named her Cubby, and from the first 
day they were good playfellows. 

Little-beaver’s mother taught the boy how to train the 
pup. He trained her to stand on her hind feet and beg for 
a bone. When she did it, he gave her a bone. Then they 
romped and played. 

When a year had passed, Cubby was a dog, but Little- 
beaver was not a man. Yet the boy and dog still played 
together when the men did not take her to hunt. 

As Little-beaver grew, he hunted small game. He and 
Cubby went out together. Sometimes they hunted hares 
and sometimes water rats. 

Sometimes Cubby hunted alone. Sometimes she came 
with a bird in her mouth. When she did, she went straight 
to Little-beaver and laid the bird at his feet. 


[15] 


16 The Early Herdsmen 


Cubby loved her little master. When he was in danger, 
she protected him. If any one tried to hurt Little-beaver, 
she fought lke a she-wolf. 

Little-beaver taught Cubby to keep guard 
over his playthings. Cubby kept watch. His 
playthings were safe when Cubby guarded 

them. 

One day early in summer Little-beaver 

could not find his dog. He called, 

but she did not answer. He called 

again, but she did not come. So 

the boy started out to hunt 
for his dog. 

He had not gone far when 
he heard Cubby whine. 
The sound came from a 
hollow oak at the foot of 
ahill. Little-beaver ran 
down the hill to the foot 
of the oak. He stooped 
down and peeked in 
the hollow of the tree. 

“Come, Cubby!” 
called Little - beaver. 

Cubby wagged her tail, but she did not come out of her 
den. Little-beaver crawled in beside her, and what do you 
think he found? 

Four little puppies! 

The boy could hardly believe his eyes. He stared at 
Cubby and then cried out, ‘Are these your pups?”’ 


He trained /-er to stand on her hind feet and beg for a bone 


How Little-beaver Got a New Name 17 


Cubby looked at her little master and wagged her bushy 
tail. 

Little-beaver reached out his hands to take one of the 
pups. 

The mother dog laid a forepaw on his hand as much as to 
say, ‘‘Don’t meddle!” 

““T won’t hurt them,’ said Little-beaver as he stroked 
Cubby’s head and neck. 

Cubby looked at him wistfully. 

“Why don’t they open their eyes?”’ asked Little-beaver. 

Cubby looked very wise, but she did not answer. 

“They are beauties!’ cried Little-beaver. 

Cubby whined tenderly and again she wagged her tail. 
And so the boy talked to the dog, and Cubby answered him. 

Many times each day Little-beaver went down to the 
hollow oak. Cubby soon let him pat the puppies. She let 
him take them in his hands. But if he did not put them 
back soon, she began to whine. 

When their eyes opened, the pups began to play. Little- 
beaver’s mother then said, “* You may have Cubby’s puppies. 
Train them.”’ 

Little-beaver trained the four pups just as he had trained 
their mother. They grew fast. They learned to do many 
things. 

In one short year Cubby’s pups grew to be as large 
as their mother. Little-beaver then had five dogs, and all 
of them were hunters. 

A few years later two of the dogs each had a litter of 
puppies. Cubby, too, had another litter. So every year 
Little-beaver added to the number of his dogs. 


How Little-beaver Got a New Name 19 


Before Little-beaver was full-grown, he had a pack of 
dogs. Besides Cubby, there were Snarler and Growler and 
Pounder and Howler and Barker and Biter and Cuffy and Cub. 
Then there were Seizer and Holder and Bushy-tail and Wag- 
tail and puppies not yet named. All of these dogs were good 
hunters. All had been trained to hunt with the men. 

By this time Little-beaver was almost as tall as a full- 
grown man. Everybody said he could hunt as well as any 
man of the clan. And everybody said no other clan had a 
better hunter than Little-beaver. ‘‘The boy with the dogs”’ 
was well known in the country far and wide. And because 
he had so many dogs he was named ‘* Many-dogs.”’ 

Many-dogs and his brothers married young women of the 
Cow clan. Game was scarce, so the young people set out in 
search of a new hunting ground. 

Many-dogs was made leader of the men, and Spin-a-thread 
was the clan mother. Tether-peg was the wise woman. 
People said she could talk with the birds. 


THINGS TO DO 


Write down the names of all the dogs you know. Which names do you 
like best? Are all the dogs you know the same kind ? 

If you have ever seen a hollow tree, tell what you know about it. Can 
you tell how 1t became hollow? Can animals make their homes in hollow 
trees? Have you ever heard of people living tn hollow trees? It is satd that 
some of the first settlers of this country found shelter in hollow trees. 

If you had a dog, what would: you train him todo? What do you think 
Little-beaver taught his dogs to do? 

Dramatize part of this story and let the children guess what you are acting. 

Illustrate one of these lines: 

“He trained her to stand on her hind feet.” 
“The mother dog laid a forepaw on his hand.” 


20 The Early Herdsmen 
a 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 

What is your sign for the coming of summer? What other signs do 
you know ? 

Can you think why people once thought they could talk with the 
birds? Have you ever heard the cry of a bird that sounded as though it 
were speaking? When you hear some one say, ‘‘A little bird told me,’’ 
what do you think it means? What does the cuckoo say? 


After Several Years 

“The cuckoo is calling,” cried Birdikin. “It is calling, 
‘Cuckoo! Cuckoo! Cuckoo!’”’ 

“Tt is telling us its name,’’ said Day’s-eye. ‘‘Let’s talk 
with the cuckoo.” 

The little girls tried to talk with the bird. They asked it 
many questions. But the only answer the bird made was, 
“Cuckoo! Cuckoo! Cuckoo!” 

“You can't understand birds,” said Little-bear, who now 
came up from the river where he had been skipping stones. 

‘Why can’t I?” asked Day’s-eye. 

“You are too little,” said Little-bear. 

‘“Mother can talk with the birds,’ said Day’s-eye. ‘‘She 
knows what they say.” 

“Nother knows almost everything,” said Little-bear. 
‘The birds tell her about Sun and they tell her about 
Sky. 

‘Mother knows about fairies, too,’’ added Day’s-eye. 
“She told me about them. The bad fairies are going away 
now. The good ones are coming back.”’ 

‘Did she tell you that?” asked Little-bear. 


After Several Years 24 


‘“Yes,’’ replied Day’s-eye. ‘“‘She told me ever so many 
things about gods, and fairies, and birds, and trees.” 

“Mother is wise,” 
said Little-bear. 

“T’m going to be hke 
Mother,’’ said Day’s- 
eye. ‘‘When I’m big, 
I’m going to be wise.”’ 

“Guess what I am 
going to be when I’m a 
man,’ said Little-bear. 

‘“When you are a man, . 
you will be strong and brave,” ns 
said Day’s-eye. “I think fe 
you will be just like Many- 
dogs.”’ 

Once again the cuckoo called and the children ran up to 
hear it. 

“Tt’s telling us something,”’ said Day’s-eye. “Let's ask 
Mother what it is.”’ 

The two children ran down to the river where the women were 
gathering water cress. Hearing their question, Drag-a-load 
answered, ‘‘The cuckoo is saying that Summer is near.” 

“That’s good news,” said Root-digger. 

“Where is Mother?’’ asked Day’s-eye when she looked all 
around and could not find her mother. 

‘““She has gone to a meeting of the tribe,’’ said Drag-a-load. 
“The leaders of the clans in our tribe meet at your grand- 
mother’s camp today.”’ 

“Why didn’t you go?” asked Little-bear. 


“The cuckoo 1S calling” 


I re. 0 7 7 7 fos ind his ei ale een wre 


Mire seas 4 ae i 
F ° i i ¥ 3 ; 
Po “SPs ; oie 


“Where is Mother?” asked 


find her mother 


After Several Years 23 


“I'm not so wise as your mother,” said Drag-a-load. ‘And 
I’m not the clan mother.” 

“Did any of the men go?”’ asked Little-bear. 

‘““Many-dogs went,” replied Drag-a-load. 

‘Is he our bravest man?”’ asked Little-bear. 

‘‘He is our bravest man,’ replied Drag-a-load. ‘‘But we 
have many brave men.”’ 

“JT think Big-crow is just as brave as Many-dogs,”’ said 
Root-digger. ‘And Gray-wolf is a good hunter. His game 
bag is never empty.”’ 

“Ts Do-lttle a good hunter?”’ asked Little-bear. 

The women laughed. 

“He doesn’t like to work,’ said  Pick-a-tree, who 
now stopped skipping stones to listen to what was said. 
“When the men go to hunt the wild bull, he sneaks off by 
himself.” 

“He comes back when they bring in the game,” said 
Little-bear. 

The women chuckled. 

“Do-httle and Eat-well are always on hand when there 
is something to eat,’ said Drag-a-load. 

“Who gave them their names?” asked Little-bear. 

“They earned them,” said Drag-a-load. 

“T don’t like their names,’’ added Little-bear. 

“They can have better names when they earn them,”’ 
said Drag-a-load. 

“When is Mother coming back from the meeting of the 
tribe ?’’ asked Day’s-eye. 

“She may come tomorrow,” replied Drag-a-load. ‘She 
won't be gone long.” 


24 The Early Herdsmen 


“Why did the leaders go to Grandmother’s camp?”’ asked 
Little-bear. 

“Tt is about time to move on,” said Drag-a-load. 
went to see about the summer hunting grounds.”’ 

Thus the women and children talked one morning in 
what we should call early spring. But in those days no 
one spoke of spring. They knew only summer and win- 
ter. Winter was the dark, gloomy season and summer 
was the season of plenty. The cuckoo told them that 
summer was near. That is why they were glad to hear the 


air 


‘hey 


bird’s call. 


THINGS TO DO 

Can you tell what made people think there were fairies? Can you tell 
why they thought the bad fairies left at the end of winter and that the good fairies 
came at that time ? 

Are trees alive? Can they talk? Have people ever thought they could 
talk ? 

How do you think Drag-a-load got her name? Which ts the easter, to 
carry a load or to dragit? If you do not know, find out. 

How do you think Spin-a-thread and Root-digger got their names ? 

Dramatize this story. 


1B | 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 


Can you think why people used to dread the winter more than we do? 
Why did they love the summer? 
Have you ever heard of a tree that people thought was a sacred tree? 
What kind of tree would people be most likely to think was sacred? 
fave you ever heard of a pit dwelling? Can you think why people 
once lived in pits? 


The Leaders Return from a Meeting of the Tribe 25 


The Leaders Return from a NMeeting 
of the T vibe 


“T think we shall leave this place soon,’ said Drag-a-load 
the second day the leaders were away. 

“T hope so,” said Root-digger. “‘I like the warm pits 
when Winter is here, but when the birds begin to sing, I 
like to live in the open.”’ 

The next day the leaders returned. When they came in 
sight, men, women, and children ran to meet them. The 
women wished to hear about their mother and her clan, and 
Many-dogs’ brothers wished to hear about the Beaver clan. 

When at last they had gathered around the camp fire, 
Tether-peg spoke to the people. ‘‘We have cause for great 
joy,’ the wise woman said. ‘Winter has been driven out 
of the land. Each day friends of Summer appear.”’ 

“Welcome, kind friends,’ cried the people. ‘‘Welcome, 
gentle Summer.’’ And with song and dance they greeted 
the birds and the budding trees. 

When the people had danced around a sacred oak, they 
stood beneath its branches. Mistletoe grew on this oak 
tree. And, since it had no roots in the ground, people said 
it was put there by Sky. They thought their god Sky had 
sent the mistletoe to dwell on his favorite tree. 

When the people were quiet, Tether-peg turned her eyes 
to the sacred oak. ‘‘See!’’ she said. ‘‘The oak is putting 
forth its buds. It is time to move on.” 

“We are ready to go!’ shouted the people, and they all 
clapped their hands. 

‘Where shall we go?”’ asked Drag-a-load. 


4 * 
4 a 


With sone and dance they greeted the birds and the budding trees 


The Leaders Return from a Meeting of the Tribe 27 


“Let us follow the herds,’ replied Many-dogs. “They 
are moving on to the foothills.” 

“Let us follow the herds!’’ shouted the people. ‘Let us 
follow the herds to the foothills.” 

“Strangers dwell there!’’ cried Drag-a-load. 

“Let them go hence!’’ shouted Many-dogs. 

“What if they won’t go?”’ cried Drag-a-load. 

“The strangers will depart,’ said Tether-peg. ‘All the 
clans of the Eagle tribe have promised to help one another.” 

‘Do the strangers know we are coming?”’ asked Gray-wolf. 

‘‘ Messengers have gone to tell them,” replied Many-dogs. 
‘“When the strangers depart, all the clans will move on to 
summer hunting grounds.”’ 

“What if the messengers bring bad news to us?” asked 
Drag-a-load. 

“They will bring good news,”’ replied Tether-peg. ‘‘ Make 
ready for the journey.”’ 

THINGS TO DO 

Find out all you can about the mrstletoe. 

Make a song to welcome some friend of summer. 

Model some foothills 1m the sand box. Find prctures of foothills. 

Dramatize part of this story. 

Illustrate one of these lines: 

“With song and dance they greeted the birds.” 
“©The oak is putting forth tts buds.’ ”’ 


IV 


“ “Let them go hence ! 
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 


What do you think the people would take with them when they moved? 
How would they pack their things? Do you think they had trunks? 


28 The Early Herdsmen 


How would they carry their things? Do you think they knew of any 
way of carrying them except on their heads, shoulders, or backs? If so, 
what ? 

If they used dogs for dragging their loads, what kind of harness 
would they have’ Is a dog’s harness anything like what people have 
used for carrying loads on their shoulders and backs? 

Why do we hke music for marching? Do you think these people had 
any kind of music for their long marches? If so, what? 


Ox to the Foothills 


All the people were glad to pack and make ready for the 
journey. Many-dogs directed the men, and Spin-a-thread 
directed the women. But in spite of this there was great 
confusion. People rushed about the camp looking for their 
things. Even the dogs rushed about and got in everybody’s 
way. 

Tether-peg rolled up her bundles and packed the horns of 
a bull. She took these horns wherever she went and put 
them on her dwelling. She thought the horns protected the 
dwelling and kept the bad fairies away. 

While they were packing, the messengers returned. ‘‘ The 
foothills are ours!”’ they cried. 

‘“Where are the strangers?’’ asked 
Many-dogs. 

“They have gone away,” the mes- 
sengers rephed. 

When the messengers passed on to 


An Eskimo toy bear : 
with a harness the next camp, the people went on with 


their packing. Tether-peg tied her pack to two tent poles 
and called Howler and Growler. 


On to the Foothills 29 


Two fine dogs came trotting to her. They knew what 
the wise woman wanted. 
“Let me slip on your harness,”’ said Tether-peg. 


She hitched the dogs to the tent poles on which she had tied her pack 


This done, she hitched the dogs to the tent poles on which 
she had tied her pack. 

It was not easy for all of these people to form into one 
long line. Many-dogs helped them by beating on his drum, 
and he signaled to them with his horn. 

When at last the long line was formed, Many-dogs cried, 
“On to the foothills!”’ . 

“On to the foothills!” answered the people, and the long 
line began to move. 

Many-dogs led the way, carrying his bow and arrow and 
polished stone axe. Several dogs were at his side running 


30 The Early Herdsmen 


about, picking up small game. Big-crow and Gray-wolf 
followed. 

The wise woman came next, and a long line of women 
followed. Little-bear and Day’s-eye were close beside 
Tether-peg. Howler and Growler followed at her heels, 
dragging the wise woman's pack. 

Tether-peg was still young and graceful. She stepped as 
lightly as a young deer. She looked first this way and then 
that way. Nothing escaped her watchful eye. 

Tether-peg’s sisters followed her in the long line. Some 
of them carried heavy burdens. Others dragged smooth tent 
poles on which they had tied their loads.  Pick-a-tree kept 
close to Drag-a-load, and Spin-a-thread’s Birdikin toddled 
at her heels as happy as a httle bird. 

All of the women were very fair. Their eyes were as 
blue as the bright blue sky, and their hair was like the sun. 
And the little children had golden hair and were fairer even 
than their mothers. 

Men brought up the rear of the line. Others with dogs 
marched at either side. For the men protected the clan on 
the march, while the women had charge of the burdens. 

All of the men were as tall as spears. They were as grace- 
ful as the trees under whose branches they walked. 

They had not gone far when Tether-peg heard the chirping 
of a wren. ‘‘Good!” she cried. ‘“‘That 1s a sign we shall 
have a safe journey.” 

Those who were near heard the good news and passed it 
down the line. All were now sure they would have a safe 
journey. For, although they could not understand the birds, 
they believed Tether-peg understood them. They thought 


On to the Foothills 31 


she could tell them the will of the gods from the cries and 
songs of the birds. 

On the march the people were sometimes weary. Then 
Many-dogs beat on his drum. Sometimes they sang songs 
to cheer one another as they marched along the trail. 

Sometimes Many-dogs sang to the people: 

“We are going to the foothills. 
We are going to the foothills. 
That is a good place to dwell.”’ 

Then the people answered: 

“Yes, we are going to the foothills. 
We are going to the foothills. 
That is a good place to dwell.”’ 

Many times the people were weary. Sometimes they 
stopped to rest. At one of the resting places they could 
look on the country far and wide. Behind them lay the low 
valley where they had spent the winter. Ahead were the 
mountains beyond the foothills, aglow with a golden light. 

Turning their backs to the dark valley, they turned their 
faces to the golden light. 

All were silent for a few moments. Then Tether-peg 
burst into song: 

“We have turned our backs to the dark valley, 
We have turned our faces to the light.”’ 

When she had finished, all the people repeated the simple 

song. 


THINGS TO DO 


Make a shoulder strap you can use for carrying a pack. How can you 


change it so as to make a dog harness ? 


32 The Early Herdsmen 


Make such a drag as Tether-peg used for her packs. Find out whether 
the Indians ever used such a drag as thts. 

Model tn the sand box the dark river valley where the people spent the 
winter. Model the mountains and foothills. Show the trail along which 
the long line moved. 

Dramatize this story. 

Illustrate one of these lines: 

“The long line began to move.”' 
“We have turned our faces to the light.’ ”’ 


V 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 

Do you think it wise for people when moving to a new country to send 
men ahead to lead the way? 

How did people get word to one another from a distance before thev 
had mail, telephones, and the telegraph? 

Can you think why the tops of the mountains are lighted up earlier 
in the morning than the valleys? Why are they last to be covered by 
darkness at night? 


Tlow the People Camped at the foothtlls 


On the way to the foothills the people heard the drums 
and horns of neighboring clans. All the clans of the 
Eagle tribe were now on the march. But they did not march 
in one long line. They kept some distance apart. 

“We shall reach the foothills before the setting of the 
sun,’’ said Many-dogs the morning of the third day. ‘This 
day we shall pitch our tents on the foothills of the 
mountains.’ 

‘Let us send runners,’ said Tether-peg. ‘“‘Let them go 
ahead to find the best place to camp.”’ 


How the People Camped at the Foothills 33 


Big-crow and Gray-wolf went ahead as runners. Other 
runners went from each of the clans. All were men who 
knew how to choose a good place for a camp. 

Soon after midday the people neared the end of their 


journey. 
“‘Listen!’’ said Tether-peg. ‘The horns are blowing!”’ 
“Our runners are at Stony Brook,’’ said Many-dogs. “I 


know that place well.”’ 

Many-dogs then answered the runners’ signal by blowing 
on his big cow horn. 

“They are coming to meet us,” said Many-dogs. ‘They 
are coming down from the foothills.”’ 

The voices of the runners were soon heard, and Many- 
dogs called to them. 

Big-crow and Gray-wolf answered, “‘This way! This way! 
This is the way to the foothills!”’ 

The long line followed where the runners led the way. 
It was not very far. Before very long they laid down their 
burdens on a foothill shaded by lofty oaks. 

“This is a good place to dwell,’ said Tether-peg as she 
cast her eyes about the place. 

“Shall we pitch our tents now?” asked Drag-a-load as she 
turned to the clan mother. 

Spin-a-thread turned to Tether-peg to see what she would 


say. 
‘Let us first make friends with the gods of the place,”’ 
replied Tether-peg. “‘A sacred oak is close at hand. Let 


us draw near and seek its protection.”’ 
The people now gathered around the oak, whose branches 
were covered with mistletoe. Placing an offering on a 


34 The Early Herdsmen 


branch, Tether-peg said, ‘Accept this gift. Be our friend. 
Protect us from all harm.” 

The branches swayed in a gentle breeze, and the green 

leaves nodded. 
— “The oak is our friend,’ 
~ said Tether-peg. “It will ward 

off all danger.” 

Hearing this, the people 

were pleased. They thought 
the oak had spoken to the wise woman. 

“Let’s go out over the foothills,” said Many-dogs. “‘ Let’s 
find something for our evening meal.”’ 

‘Come, Barker! Come, Biter! Come, Cuffy! Come, 
Cub!” called Gray-wolf to the dogs. 

The dogs came as soon as called, and the 
whole pack went with the men to pick up some 


“1 wooden food tray 


small game. 

While unpacking, the women looked about 
to see the new place. ‘“‘Look at the trees!”’ 
said Spin-a-thread. ‘“‘We don’t need to put ] 
up our tents.” ) 

‘‘Let the trees be our shelter,’ said Tether- 
peg. 

“The trees are our tents!”’ cried the women. 
‘“The friendly trees are our tents!”’ 

“Stack the tent poles,’’ said Spin-a-thread. 

While her sisters stacked the poles, Spin-a- 
thread marked out a spot for each woman to build her fire. 

Tether-peg kindled the sacred fire. She put dry branches 
of oak upon it until the flames rose high. Then she unpacked 


A water basket 


How the People Camped at the Foothills a5 


the horns of a bull and placed them upon the oak tree that 
marked her dwelling place. 


‘““Take this water basket,’ said Drag- 
a-load to Pick-a-tree, when she had made 
“Run to the brook and 
fill it with water; fetch it here by the 


her cooking-pit. 


Hire; 


Pick-a-tree took the basket and ran to 
the brook. Little-bear took a water jar 
and brought water for Tether-peg. All 
the older children helped. Some of them 
picked up dry branches, and others 


A water jar 


tended their baby brothers and sisters while their mothers 


did other things. 
+ Lhe tires: are. burming,: 


’ 


said Root-digger. ‘I’m hungry. 


I wish the men would come.”’ 


A decorated water jar 


The men came a few moments later, and 
they had their evening meal. Before it 
was finished, the snow-capped mountains 
were aglow with a rosy hght. 

The people arose and looked up to the 
mountains. They joined in a song of 
praise. 

While they were singing twilight came 
to the hills, and darkness covered the 
valley. But the snow-capped mountain 
peaks glowed with a beautiful light. 


Soon darkness covered the foothills, but the mountains 
still glowed with a bright light. And when darkness had 
covered the mountains, the people were asleep. 


36 The Early Herdsmen 


THINGS TO DO 


Watch the sunset and notice whether everything becomes dark at the same 
time. What, tf anything, stays ight longest ? 
How can a basket be made water-tight ? 
How many ways do you know of carrying water? Where does the water 
you drink come from? How ts it brought to you ? 
Did the horns of a bull really protect Tcther-peg’s dwelling? Are there 
people living today who belicve such things? If so, where do they live ? 
Dramatize this story. 
Illustrate one of these lines: 
‘“‘Pick-a-tree took the basket and ran to the brook.” 
“The trees are our tents.’ ”’ 


V1 
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 

What animals and birds, if any, make their home on the mountains? 

Can you think why people once thought the sky was a god? Can you 
think why they thought the sun was a god? Why did they love the 
bright sky and the sun? 

Can you think why people once thought the eagle was the messenger 
of the god Sky? 

How many grass-eating animals do you know? Can you think how 
people began to tame the grass-cating animals? Do you think Tether-peg 
had ever tried to tame an animal when she was a girl? 


What the Men Brought Home from 


the Alountains 


The men were eager to climb the mountains. There were 
flocks of wild sheep and goats on the mountains, and the 
men wanted to hunt them. By the break of day the men 
were up and talking about wild game. 


What the Men Brought Home from the Mountains 37 


“Let’s climb the mountains,’ said Many-dogs. ‘‘Let’s 
find the pastures of the wild goats.”’ 
“We will climb the mountains!” cried his brothers. ‘‘We 


will climb to the pastures of the wild goats.”’ 

All the men were soon on the trail that led to the moun- 
tain pastures. 

The women and children took their baskets and roamed 
over the foothills. They were looking for young green leaves 
and the tender shoots of plants. 

Tether-peg went with the women and children, and she, 
too, carried a basket. But she was looking for signs of 
the season. She was listening to the songs and cries of the 
birds. 

They had been on the hills some time when Drag-a-load 
came within calling distance of Root-digger. ‘‘Is your basket 
full?”’ she called. 

‘Not quite,’’ replied Root-digger. 

“Mine is,’’ said Drag-a-load. ‘“‘Come, Root-digger, let's 
go home.” 

“Go, 1f you want to,” called Root-digger. ‘‘I'll come 
when my basket is full.” 

The rich tones of cow horns now sounded down the 
mountain valley. 

“That’s a sweet sound,’’ said Drag-a-load. 

‘The men have found game,” said Root-digger. ‘I think 
my basket is full enough. Let’s go home.” 

All the women and children now started toward the 
camp. All wanted to be there when the men came in with 
the game. So all hurried down the trail that led to their 
camping place. 


38 The Early Herdsmen 


The children piped and danced all the way. They 
made music with hollow reeds they found on the hills. 
Little-bear and Pick-a-tree blew willow whistles they had 
made since coming to the foothills. 

“Stop here,’ said Spin-a-thread when they reached Stony 
Brook. ‘‘Let’s empty our baskets. Let’s wash the greens.”’ 

The women stooped down and washed the greens in the 
running water. Then they carried them to their fires and 
put them on to boil. The 
greens were boiling in the 
cooking-pits when the men 
came in sight. 

Many-dogs headed the 
long line. The body of 
an eagle rested on one 

shoulder, and a kid was 

under his arm. 

Most of the men 
had something in their 
game bags. Big-crow 
carried on his shoulders 
the carcass of a wild 
goat 

The women and 
children clapped their 
hands when they saw 

the men come into 
camp. Some cried out, 
“An eagle! An eagle!”’ 
The children piped and danced all the way Others cried, ‘‘Come 


What the Men Brought Home from the Mountains 39 


and see the wild goat! Come and see the big jumper!” 

Many-dogs spoke not a single word until he went to the 
sacred fire, where he offered thanks. Then he turned to 
Tether-peg, who was standing by the fire. 

The wise woman glanced first at the eagle and then at 
the kid under Many-dogs’ arm. She reached out her hand 
and touched the kid. “It’s warm! It’s alive!” she said. 

“Yes, -the little jumper is 
alive,’ said Many-dogs. ‘‘Isaved 
him from the eagle’s talons.” 

Tether-peg reached out her 
arms, and Many-dogs gave 
her the kid. For a mo- 
ment she pressed him to 
her breast. Then she 
fastened a cord about his 
neck and tethered him to 


a tent peg. 

Those who had _ been vig Si 
looking at the carcass of pe 
the goat now came va 


to see the eagle. 

“Tt’sa noble bird,” 
said Many-dogs as he 
stroked the eagle's 
feathers. 

“Tt 6. @ Sacred a 
bird,’’ added Tether- 
peg. ‘The ecagle is 


. , “T+'s a noble bird,” said Many-dogs as he 
Sky’s messenger. stroked the eagle's feathers 


40 The Early Herdsmen 


“Won't Sky be angry?” asked Spin-a-thread. 

“We must make him an offering,’”’ said Tether-peg. 

And so, when the wild goat was dressed, Tether-peg chose 
a piece of its flesh as an offering to Sky. She placed the 
offering upon the sacred fire, for she thought the fire would 
bear the gift to the great god Sky. 


THINGS TO DO 


See tf you can make music by blowing through the hollow stem of a plant. 
What wild plants do you know that can be used for greens? What plants 
that grow in our gardens are used as greens? Were any plants cultivated 
when these people lived? 

If you have ever had some anrmal pet, tell how you took care of tt. Name 
animals that are kept as pets. 

Tell a story showing how you think Tcther-peg earned her name. 

Find out what you can about eagles. 

Dramatize part of this story. 

Illustrate one of these lines: 

“Many-dogs headed the long line.” 
** “Come and see the big gumper!’”’ 


VII 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 

Do you think the people will be able to keep the kid? Do you think 
all of them will want to keep it? If they do not agree, can you think how 
they might settle their dispute? 

Do you think Tether-peg’s mother had ever tried to tame an animal ? 
Do you think Tether-peg had ever kept animal pets when she was a girl? 
Why, or why not? 

You may like to know that many hunting tribes tame a few animals 
and birds as pets before they think of taming the grass-eating animals 
and taking care of flocks and herds. 


Why the People Listened to the Song of a Bird 41 


Why the People Listened to the 
Song of a Bird 


The morning after the kid was brought home the people 
awoke with the birds. For a moment they listened to the 
sweet chorus that flooded the hills with song. Tether-peg 
then kindled the sacred fire, and again 
a new day dawned. 

“You need a mother,’’ said Tether- 
peg as she looked down into the basket 
where the kid was sleeping on a bed 
of dry moss. . 

Eat-well’s eyes now fell upon the 
kid. Turning to Do-little, the man 
said, ““Let’s kill the little jumper.”’ 

“Yes,” said Do-little, “let’s gm 
kill him.” } 

The children heard what 
Eat-well and Do-little said. 
They ran to Tether-peg and 
cried out, ‘‘ Don’t let them do 
it! Don't let them do it!” 

“Do what?”’ asked Tether- 
peg. 

“They want to kill Little- 
jumper,’ said Day’s-eye, % 
pointing toward Eat-well and 
Do-little. 

By this time everybody 
heard the commotion in the Pe ee 


’ 


ae 
bad 


42 The Early Herdsmen 


camp. So Tether-peg called them all together and asked 
them to listen to a bird that was calling from one of the trees. 

Turning to Eat-well, Tether-peg asked, ‘‘What does the 
bird say?”’ 

“Fall it! Kall it!’’ replied Eat-well. 

Do-little replied in the same way. 

“Listen again,’ said the wise woman. 

All listened once more to the call of the bird. 

Turning to Day’s-eye, Tether-peg asked, ‘‘ What does the 
little bird say?”’ 

‘Feed it! Feed it!’ said the child. ‘“‘That’s what the 
little bird says.” 

Many-dogs smiled at the child’s answer, but Eat-well and 
Do-httle frowned. So again the wise woman asked all the 
people to listen to the call of the bird. 

Again the people listened. And this time the call was so 
clear all could understand. Even Eat-well could not deny 
that the bird sang, ‘‘Feed it! Feed it!” 

‘So be it,” said Tether-peg. ‘‘The bird has brought us 
a message from the gods.” 

Many-dogs now stepped up to the basket where the little 
kid was sleeping. Bending down, he said, ‘ Little-jumper, 
I’ll fetch a mother to you.”’ 

“Where is Little-jumper’s mother?’’ asked Little-bear. 

‘In the mountain pasture,” replied Many-dogs. “TI will 
climb to the mountain pastures. I will climb to the pasture 
where the jumpers feed.” 

“Did you see Little-jumper’s mother yesterday?" asked 
Spin-a-thread. 

“She was beside him when I first heard the eagle,’’ replied 


Why the People Listened to the Song of a Bird 43 


Many-dogs. “I didn’t see her after that. My eyes were 
fixed on the bird.” 

‘““T saw her,”’ said Big-crow. ‘She was near the big jumper 
that stood guard and gave a signal of alarm.” 

‘““T heard the leader whistle,’’ added Gray-wolf. “I saw 
him jump for the rocks. The whole flock jumped after him.”’ 

“T wish we could jump as they did,” said Big-crow. 

“They are good jumpers,” said Gray-wolf. 

“T wish you could find Little-jumper’s mother, Many-dogs,”’ 
said Tether-peg. 

“T’ll try,’ said Many-dogs. “If I can’t find her, I'll find 
another mother jumper.” 

“Do you want us to go with you?”’ asked Big-crow. 

“No,” replied Many-dogs. ‘Make a pitfall for the wild 
bulls. I will go alone today.”’ 

“May Sky watch over your steps,” said Tether-peg. “May 
he lead you to the pasture of the big jumpers.” 

Many-dogs now called the dogs, and the whole pack came 
leaping and bounding, eager to go with him. 

‘No, Growler; no, Snarler,’’ Many-dogs said, “I can't 
take you today. No, Biter, not this time. Go with Big-crow 
and hunt the wild bull.” 

As he spoke their names, the dogs stepped aside, but 
others came crowding around him. They wagged_ their 
tails; they looked at their master as if they were saying, 
* Please.” 

Many-dogs looked them all over. ‘Not you, nor you, 
nor you,”’ he said as Howler and Barker and Pounder brushed 
their cold noses against his hands. And so he spoke to each 
of the dogs until Seizer pressed up to him. 


‘Make a pitfall for the wild bulls" 


How Many-dogs Captured a Mother Goat 45 


‘‘Ah, Seizer, you are the dog for this trip! Come, my 
good dog. Come along with me.” With these words man 
and dog started up the trail which led to the pastures of the 
wild goats. 


THINGS TO DO 


Listen to the birds and see 1f any of them seem to speak words you can 
understand. How do birds help man? 
Dramatize this story. 
Illustrate one of these lines: 
“They ran to Tether-peg and cried out, ‘Don’t let them do it!” 
““Vou are the dog for this trip.’”’ 
Model a dog in clay. 


VIII 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 


Have you ever heard any one speak of the forest line on a mountain? 
What does it mean? Why can’t trees grow on the high mountain peaks? 
What do trees need in order to grow? Do you think the mountain pas- 
tures of the wild sheep and goats were above or below the forest line? 

Why are mountain brooks usually noisy? What do they bring down 
from the mountains? What happens to the pieces of rock which are 
tumbled along by the stream? 


How Many-dogs Captured a Mother Goat 


The first part of the way Many-dogs went was along the 
wooded banks of Stony Brook. This brook was a merry 
little stream. It babbled and chattered on its way. It 
tumbled over its stony bed in its hurry to join the river. 
It rattled and banged pieces of rock it brought down from 
the mountain side. 


46 The Early Herdsmen 


Now Many-dogs did not understand what the brook was 
doing. He thought the brook was a merry little god. And 
when, farther up, Stony Brook was joined by other mountain 
streams, it seemed to the man that the gods were leaping 
like goats from rock to rock. 

Soon he came to a place where the trail forked. Here 
Many-dogs halted. One branch led through a dark ravine; 
the other led up to a narrow path along the edge of a cliff. 
The way through the ravine was dark, so Many-dogs chose 
the narrow path along the edge of a steep cliff. 

This way was rough and narrow. It was the path of the 
wild goats. Once Many-dogs slipped, and he would have 
fallen had he not caught hold of the branch of a fir tree that 
grew near the path. 

Many-dogs thanked the fir tree for helping him, and he 
prayed thus to the mountain: ‘‘Keep my feet from  slip- 
ping. Let me not fall. Lead me to the pasture of the big 
jumper.” 

The trail now rose by steep zigzags. At one of the points 
Many-dogs saw wild sheep on an upland plateau. Seizer 
saw them and wanted to hunt them, but Many-dogs called 
him back. 

“No, no, Seizer,’’ said Many-dogs. ‘‘Come here, my 
good dog.”” Then he patted Seizer’s head and _ said, 
‘Don’t chase the bunters. We are after a mother jumper.’’ 

Seizer seemed to understand him. So man and dog 
went on. 

They had not gone far when once again they came to a 
place where the trail forked. To the right the trail led to a 
plateau where the wild sheep were feeding. To the left the 


How Many-dogs Captured a Mother Goat 47 


trail was rough and narrow. It led to the high rocky pasture 
of the wild goats. 

Up, up, Many-dogs climbed the trail of the wild goats. 
Sometimes Seizer was a few steps ahead, and sometimes he 
followed his master. In this way they passed the forest line 
and reached the pasture of the wild goats. 

“Hist! Seizer!’’ said Many-dogs. ‘‘Come here behind this 
rock.”’ 

Many-dogs peeked out from behind the rock to look for 
the wild goats. ‘There they are,’’ said he to himself when 
he caught sight of two sentinels and several goats with their 
kids. But nowhere could he see any trace of the goat he 
was looking for. 

A few moments later the leader of the flock came in sight. 
Then other goats with their kids appeared. Off to one side 
he now caught a glimpse of a lone mother goat. 

“She’s Little-jumper’s mother,’ said Many-dogs. ‘‘Be 
quiet, Seizer, be quiet.”’ 

The man then patted the dog on the head and called him 
a good dog. ‘Listen, Seizer,” said Many-dogs. ‘‘I want 
you to help me catch that jumper.’’ 

Seizer was eager to start, but his master held him back. 
Again he patted the dog and said, ‘‘Seize her, my dog! 
seize her!”’ 

Quick as an arrow springs from a bow, Seizer sprang toward 
the goat. Many-dogs followed at full speed, while the 
sentinels, seeing the danger, gave signals and the flock 
jumped for the rocks. 

There was a mad chase that day over the rocky pasture. 
At first the goats outran man and dog, but soon they became 


He picked his way down the rough trail 


How Many-dogs Captured a Mother Goat 49 


tired. While they were resting, Many-dogs and Seizer came 
close upon them. 

“Seize her! Seize her!”’ cried Many-dogs. 

Seizer sprang upon the goat. He held her fast until 
Many-dogs reached the spot. Even then he stood guard 
while his master bound her feet. 

“Don’t be afraid,’ said Many-dogs to the goat when 
he bound her forefeet together. “I’m not going to hurt 
you.” 

Now the wild goat did not understand what Many-dogs 
said to her. She was not used to a man’s talk. It 1s not 
strange that she tried to kick. It is not strange that she 
tried to jump. But, try as she would, the poor goat could 
neither kick nor jump. Her feet were bound fast. She was 
helpless. 

Many-dogs now stooped down and lfted the goat upon 
his back. Then he picked his way down the rough trail, 
followed by his faithful dog. 


THINGS TO DO 


If you know a goat, tell a story about tt. Find pictures of goats. See 
if you can find a picture of a mountain pasture of wild goats. 

Model in the sand box the mountain Many-dogs climbed. Show the 
tratls, the ravine, the cliffs, the forest belt, upland pastures, the snow-capped 
peaks, the mountain streams and brooks. 

Model a goat in clay. 

Illustrate one of these lines: 

“It tumbled over its stony bed.” 

“Up, up, Many-dogs climbed.” 

“He picked his way down the rough trail, followed by his faithful 
dog.”’ 


50 The Early Herdsmen 
IX 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 


How do you think the wild goat acted when it was taken to the camp? 
Do you think the people will be able to tame her? Why, or why not? 

If she is tamed, who will be likely to tame her? 

Have you ever heard an echo? Can you think what makes the echo? 
Why did people use to think that the echo was a goddess calling? 

Do you think people have any right to tease animals? 


How the People Treated the Mother Goat 


‘“Little-jumper must be fed,’ said Tether-peg as Many- 
dogs started up the mountain trail. ‘The gods have spoken 
through the song of a bird. They will lend us their aid.” 

The wise woman then prayed to the great god Sky. “‘Show 
Many-dogs the way,” she said. ‘Keep his feet in the right 
path. Let him not slip. Show him the pasture of the 
jumpers.” 

Now and again throughout the day the children asked 
many questions. They asked how people of their clan got 
the names they were called. 


“T want a good name,”’ said Little-bear. ‘‘I want to be 
like Many-dogs.”’ 
“Times change,” said the wise woman. ‘The best name 


for our day may not be the best for yours.” 

Little-bear seemed puzzled. 

“Each day has its work,” said the wise woman. ‘‘Some 
day a work will be yours which will give you a new name.” 

Little-bear smiled. 

“Now run and play,’ said Tether-peg. ‘‘See who can 
jump the farthest.”’ 


How the People Treated the Mother Goat 51 


When the sun was in the western sky, Tether-peg looked 
up to the mountains. At first she saw no sign of Many- 
dogs. But soon she caught sight of some one moving on 
the trail that skirted a cliff. 

“He is coming,’”’ said Tether-peg to herself. ‘I will go 
to meet him.” 

When she came within calling distance, Tether-peg called, 
“Ts all well?” 

“All is well,’ answered Many-dogs. 

Echo answered, ‘All well! well!”’ 

Tether-peg listened. Two voices came from the moun- 
tain. One was the voice of Many-dogs. The other was 
like her own. 

“It’s Echo,’ thought Tether-peg. ‘‘She is always call- 
ing. I wish I might find her.” 

Many-dogs now appeared on the trail beside Stony Brook. 
““See!’’ he cried. “I’ve brought Little-jumper’s mother.”’ 
Then he told Tether-peg how Seizer helped him catch her. 

Seizer heard his name spoken and wagged his tail. The 
wise woman praised the dog and patted him on the head. 

Women and children now saw them coming and ran out 
to meet them. They followed close to Many-dogs until he 
put down his load. 

“Tether her now,” said Many-dogs. ‘‘Then I'll untie 
the thongs on her feet.” 

When the wise woman had tethered the goat, Many- 
dogs unbound her feet. First he unbound her forefeet and 
then he unbound her hind feet. 

“Get out of her way,” said Many-dogs as he stepped aside 
with the thongs. 


’) 


52 The Early Herdsmen 


The goat jumped up and started to run. The people 
began to laugh. For when the goat came to the end of her 
tether, she was standing on her head. 

Before they stopped laughing the goat was running in the 
opposite direction. Again she came to the end of her tether. 
Again she stood on her head. 

Again the people laughed, but the goat thought it was no 
laughing matter. She looked at the thong. She pulled and 
pulled. She tried her best to break her tether. 

Many-dogs now 
stepped up to the goat. 
He reached out his 
hand and spoke to the 
frightened creature 
she rose up on _ her 
hind legs. She tried 
to spring upon him. 

Many-dogs spoke 
kindly to the goat, but 
he kept out of her 
reach. She reared, she 
jumped, she threatened 
him, she struck at him 
with her horns. 

At last the poor crea- 
ture was tired out. She 
lay down on the ground 
at the foot of a tree. 
While she was resting, 
the kid awoke from its nap and bleated for its mother. 


She tried to break her tether 


How the People Treated the Mother Goat 53 


At once the goat was on her feet looking for her kid. She 
bleated and the kid answered. Then Tether-peg gave the 
kid a long tether and let it run to its mother. 

The goat bleated for very joy when she caught sight of 
her kid. She forgot the troubles of the day. She forgot 
everything but the kid. 

‘Don’t go near her,” said Tether-peg to the children as 
they pressed up to the goat and kid. ‘Jumper is_ wild. 
Keep away for a while.”’ 

When the men came from making a pitfall, they saw the 
wild goat. They teased the poor creature. They laughed 
at her when she reared and jumped and stood on her head. 

From the time the men came in, the goat had no peace. 
Not until the evening meal did the men stop teasing her. 
Then Tether-peg said to the people, ‘This mother jumper 
is our friend. She has been brought to our camp through 
the will of the gods. Let no one tease the poor creature. 
Let no one do her any harm.” 


) 


THINGS TO DO 
Find a place where you can call and hear an echo. 
Model a goat and kid in bas-relief. 
Illustrate one of these lines: 
“First he unbound her forefeet.”’ 
“She tried to break her tether.” 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 


Have you ever heard it said that if you eat the flesh of an eagle you 
will be wise? Do you think it is true? Have you heard it said that if 
you eat the heart of a bear you will be brave? Do you think it is true? 


54 The Early Herdsmen 


Why the People Prized the Flesh 
of an Fragle 


Many-dogs had many misgivings about killing the eagle. 
To be sure, by so doing he saved the kid. But the eagle 
was Sky’s messenger, and he feared the wrath of Sky. 

He skinned the big bird, taking great pains to keep the 
feathers in shape. He wanted to make an eagle headdress 
and he wanted to plume 
some of his arrows with 
the long tail feathers 

When the eagle was 
skinned, he handed the 
carcass to Tether-peg, 

saying, ‘‘Eat this and 
be wise.”’ 

“Truly, I shall eat 
of this flesh,”’ said the 
wise woman. ‘“‘My 
children, too, shall eat 
ofit. They, too, shall 
be wise.”’ 

Now Spin-a-thread 
heard what Tether- 
pee said, and she 
thought of Buirdikin. 
She thought the child 
would become wise if 
she ate the flesh of 


a 
: be x ! 
ee 
em, Sb 


Many-dogs had many misgivings about killing the eagle the eagle. 


Why the People Prized the Flesh of an Eagle 55 


80 Spin-a-thread went to Many-dogs and said, ‘‘ Eagle's 
flesh is not for Little-bear. The boy should eat the heart 
of a bear.”’ 

“You are right,’ said Many-dogs. ‘We shall need brave 
men. Let him eat the heart of a bear.” 

“Let Little-bear choose for himself,’ said Tether-peg 
when Many-dogs told her what Spin-a-thread said. 

“Let Birdikin choose,’ said Spin-a-thread. 

“She may,’ said Tether-peg. ‘‘Call Birdikin and call 
Little-bear and Day’s-eye.”’ 

The children came running when they were called, and 
Spin-a-thread placed them in a row in front of Tether-peg. 

Looking down at the little people, Tether-peg asked, 
“Will you eat the flesh of the eagle and be wise or the heart 
of a bear and be brave and strong?” 

“T will eat the flesh of the eagle,’’ said Day’s-eye. 

“What is your choice, Birdikin?’’ asked Tether-peg. 

“‘T choose the flesh of the eagle,’ said the child. 

All this time Little-bear was silent. Now Tether-peg said, 
“Little-bear, what is your choice?”’ 

‘“‘T choose the heart of a bear,” said Little-bear. 

“Good!”’ cried Many-dogs. ‘You shall have the heart 
of the first bear that is killed, my boy.”’ 

“Eat of this flesh and be wise,” said Tether-peg as she 
gave Day’s-eye and Birdikin pieces of the eagle’s flesh. ‘‘Be 
like the eagle in wisdom. Be like Sky’s messenger.”’ 

“Shall I have a new name?” asked Day’s-eye when she 
had tasted the flesh. 

“You have a good name,’ answered Tether-peg. 

“Who gave it to me?” asked the child. 


56 The Early Herdsmen 


“T gave you the name,” 1eplied Tether-peg. ‘“‘I gave you 
the name of the bright little flower that turns its face to the 
hehts 

“T’ll try to be like the flower,” said Day’s-eye. “TI will 
turn my face to the light.” 

“Shall I have a new name?”’ asked Birdikin. 

“Yes,” replied Tether-peg. “‘Birdikin is a good name for 
a child, but it is not the name of a woman.” 

“T’m going to earn a new name,” said Little-bear. 

“You will, Little-bear,’’ said Tether-peg. ‘Do your best 
every day. Mark each moon with a good deed.”’ 


THINGS TO DO 


Tell what it means to look on the bright side. 
What does it mean to turn your face to the light ? 
Dramatize this story. 
Illustrate thts line: 

‘““ ‘Fat this and be wise.’”’ 


| 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 


Why is the eagle called a bird of prey? Can you think why men 
used to like to have headdresses made of the skins of birds? 

Have you ever read the story called ‘‘Chicken Little’? If so, what 
was Chicken Little afraid would happen to the sky? 

What do you think the sky is? 


Why the People Were Frightened at 
the Screaming of a Raven 


“What is Many-dogs doing?’’ asked Big-crow when he 
finished putting a new haft on his polished stone axe. 


Why the People Were Frightened oy 


‘“He’s working on his eagle head dress,”’ replied Gray-wolf. 
‘“‘Let’s go and see how it looks.” 

A group of men went to the spot where Many-dogs was 
working. 

“Those are beautiful feathers,’’ said Big-crow. 

“Look at that beak,” said Gray-wolf, whose eyes rested 
upon the head of the eagle. “It’s a powerful weapon.”’ 

“It’s sharp, too,’ said Big-crow as he touched the tip of 
the beak with his finger tips. 

“The beak is a powerful ion 

bos /g 
weapon,” said Many-dogs. 7 \ 
“But look at those claws.”’ 

“They are like the horns of a 
young bull,’’ said Gray-wolf. 

“They are not so large,”’ said 
Big-crow. 

“That is true, replied Gray- 
wolf. ‘Buta bull has only two 
horns, while the eagle has four 
sharp claws on each foot.”’ 

‘Feel the sharp points,’”’ said 
Many-dogs as he passed his 
fHimeers. Over the tips of the 
eagle's talons. 

“They can pierce and rend,”’ 
said Gray-wolf. | 

“Yes,” replied Many-dogs. -* 
“And when the eagle swoops 
down from the sky, his claws , 
deal a powerful blow.”’ Making a stone axe 


b 


58 The Early Herdsmen 


“Did he strike the kid?” asked Do-little. 

“Oh, no,” replied Many-dogs. ‘A blow from those claws 
would have killed the kid.” 

“When did you first see the eagle?’’ inquired Big-crow. 

‘“T heard him before I saw 
him,” replied Many-dogs. 
‘‘T heard him scream just as 
he began to descend.”’ 

“T didn’t hear him,” said 
Big-crow. ‘‘But I heard 
the signals of the sentinels.”’ 

‘‘T saw the goats jump 
for the rocks; said. Wo- 
little. ‘“‘But I did n’t know 
what was the matter.”’ 

'Theséagle ssa switt 
bird,’’ said Many-dogs. 
‘“He swooped down so fast 
I had to be quick. I sent 
my arrow just in time.” 

‘“Those are powerful wings,’ said Big-crow as he looked 
at the long, pointed wings Many-dogs had spread out. 

“The eagle is strong of wing,’ said Many-dogs. ‘‘He 
can soar over the highest mountains way up to Sky.” 

“He’s a fearless bird,’ said Big-crow. 

“He’s a mighty bird,” added Many-dogs. ‘‘No wonder 
Sky chose the eagle as his messenger.”’ 

“Do you remember the eagle we saw last summer?”’ 
asked Big-crow. ‘‘Do you remember how he circled and 
circled, always higher and higher?” 


eee 


A polished stone axe 


Why the People Were Frightened 59 


‘“‘T remember,’’ said Gray-wolf. “‘We watched him circle 
round and round until he was out of sight.”’ 

‘““That’s a fine headdress,’”’ said Big-crow, looking at the 
feathers Many-dogs was using to make the eagle headdress. 
“T’ll have one some day. I’m going to kill an eagle and 
have his feathers for a headdress.”’ 

‘Don’t do it,’ said Many-dogs. “Sky will be angry if 
we kill another eagle. Sometimes I wish I had not seen the 
eagle. I don’t like to kill Sky’s bird.” 

“That tail feather would send an arrow to its mark,”’ 
said Big-crow, who appeared not to have heard what 
Many-dogs said. | 

For a moment Many-dogs forgot his misgivings. ‘‘Let’s 
plume our arrows,” he said. With these words he gave 
each of his brothers a long tail feather. 

The men plumed their arrows. They used them in hunting, 
and the men said that they brought them good luck, for they 
carried home plenty of game. So they all joined in a 
great hunting dance at which Many-dogs wore his new 
headdress. 

All went well for a lttle while. Everybody admired the 
eagle headdress. Everybody was happy and gay. ‘Then, 
suddenly, a raven came flying and screaming right over 
their heads. 

At the weird sound the people cried out, ‘‘ The sky is fall- 
ing! The sky is falling! Darkness covers the earth!”’ 

Then all but Tether-peg crouched and cowered upon the 
ground at the foot of the oak trees. And every few moments 
they cried out, ‘The sky is falling! The sky is falling! 
Darkness covers the earth!”’ 


sO ao ole tia 


SE i 


A raven came flying and screaming right over their heads 


Why the People Feared the Sky Would Fall 61 


THINGS TO DO 


Find pictures of an eagle and notice tts talons, tts beak, tts wings, and 
its tail feathers. 
How does the eagle get its food? Name other birds of prey. 
Model an eagle in clay. 
Dramatize thts story. 
Illustrate one of these lines: 
“fA raven came flying and screaming right over their heads.”’ 
“**T dow’t like to kill Sky’s bird.’ ” 


5 el 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 


Have you ever been afraid and then found there was nothing to fear? 
Who is more likely to be quickly frightened, the ignorant person or the 
intelligent person? If we knew enough, should we ever be afraid? 

Have you ever heard the story of Chanticleer, who thought that he 
caused the sun to rise each morning by his crowing? 

Have you ever heard of people who thought the sun would not rise 
unless they got up early and lighted fires to help it? In olden times 
many people thought this. Do you think their fires made any difference 
with the rising of the sun? 


Why the People Feared the 
Sky Would Fall 


When the raven came flying and screaming over the 
camp, Tether-peg did not cry out. She did not crouch and 
cower under the trees. She peered into the darkness. She 
listened to every sound. 

“Draw near to the sacred fire,’ said Tether-peg. ‘‘Let 
us seek its protection.” 


62 The Early Herdsmen 


First one and then another lifted up his head. When 
they arose, they stepped cautiously. They listened to every 
sound. 

“Let us make an offering,” said Tether-peg. 

The people drew near and bowed their heads. 

Tether-peg then held an oak branch in her hand and 
prayed thus to the fire: “‘O sacred fire! Accept this gift. 
Blaze up! Send up your smoke! ‘Touch the heavens with 
your bright flames!” 

The wise woman then placed a branch on the fire. It 
flamed up and sent up smoke. Its flames sent forth a cheer- 
ful light and comforted the people. 

“Gather dry branches,” said Tether-peg. ‘‘ Bring them to 
the sacred fire.”’ 

Men and women brought dry branches of the oak. They 
piled them on the sacred fire. The flames rose higher and 
higher until they lighted up the foothills. 

A sense of relief now came over the people. They dared 
once again look up to the sky. 

“Sky is pleased!’”’ cried Many-dogs. ‘‘See, he is lighting 
up his tent!” 

Glad faces turned to the moon as it came out from behind 
dark clouds. Glad faces welcomed the stars as they came 
out one by one. 

“Sky is lighting up the night,” said Tether-peg. ‘‘He 1s 
lighting up the night with the moon and stars.”’ 

For some time the people stood in silence watching the 
moon and stars. Then Many-dogs turned to Tether-peg 
and asked, ‘‘How did the raven know I had killed Sky’s 
bird?”’ 


7 


First one and then another lifted up his head. When they arose, they stepped 
cautiously. Thev listened to every sound 


64 The Early Herdsmen 


‘The raven is a wise bird,’’ said Tether-peg. ‘‘The raven 
knows the things that are past and the things that are to 
come.”’ 

‘Did the raven say Sky was angry?” asked Many-dogs. 

‘“The raven came to warn us,” said Tether-peg. 

“T’m not going to try to kill an eagle,’’ said Big-crow. 
“T’m not going to offend Sky.” 

‘“Let’s not kill any more eacles,”’ said Many-dogs. ‘They 
belong to Sky.” 

“Tf an eagle swoops down for a kid, you will kill him, 
won't you?”’ asked Drag-a-load. 

Many-dogs shook his head. 

““Sky’s bird must have food,” said Tether-peg. ‘‘Let 
him take what he will.” 

And the people repeated, ‘“‘Sky’s bird must have food. 
Let him take what he will.”’ 

Some of the people now lay down to sleep under the oak 
trees. Others stayed by the sacred fire. 

The night seemed long to those who watched. It seemed 
so long that some of them feared the sun would never rise 
again. Some of them feared that never again would they 
see a new day. 

“Will Dawn ever bring us a new day?” asked Gray-wolf. 

“Let us hope so,” replied Tether-peg. “Let us kindle 
anew the sacred fire. Let us chase Darkness from the camp. 
Then Dawn will be able to chase away Darkness and bring 
another day.’ 

So the wise woman took her fire sticks and kindled anew 
the sacred fire. The people piled branches of oak upon it 
until it burned with a bright light. 


Why the People Feared the Sky Would Fall 65 


’ 


““We have chased Darkness away from the camp,’ said 
the wise woman. ‘‘Now Dawn will chase Darkness away 
and light up a new day.” 

A gleam of light soon appeared on a snow-capped peak. 

““Dawn is coming!” cried Spin-a-thread. 

“The gods be praised!’’ cried Tether-peg, and the people 
bowed their heads. 

First one peak and then another caught the bright glow 
of dawn. 

‘““See!’’ cried Spin-a-thread. ‘‘ Dawn drives Darkness away 
from the mountains before she comes down to the foothills.”’ 

“Dawn loves the mountains,’ said Tether-peg. ‘‘ They 
hold up Sky’s tent.” 

“Where did Sky get the big skin for his tent?’’ asked 
Gray-wolf. 

“No man knows,” replied Tether-peg. 

“It’s a big tent,’’ said Drag-a-load. ‘‘Sky’s tent covers 
us all.” 


“Tt covers the trees,’”’ said Spin-a-thread. ‘It covers the 
birds.”’ 
“Tt covers the grass,’ said Many-dogs. “It covers the 


flocks and herds.”’ 

‘““Yes,’’ added Tether-peg, “‘Sky’s tent covers all. It 
covers the whole earth.” 

Dawn soon came down the mountains and chased Dark- 
ness away from the foothills. Then she ran down into the 
valleys and drove Darkness away. 

When the sun appeared in the eastern sky the people 
burst into song. Sky’s tent was still overhead. It was 
spread out over all. 


66 The Early Herdsmen 


THINGS TO DO 


How does nature light up the night ? 
Watch the moon sometime when it comes out from a dark cloud, and 
draw the picture. 
Watch the sun rise some morning. Look for the dawn. Can you see 
why people called the dawn a beautiful girl ? 
See if you can explain why the sun rises. Tell why dawn appears before 
the sun. 
Illustrate one of these lines: 
“First one and then another lifted up his head.”’ 
‘A gleam of light soon appeared on a snow-capped peak.” 


XIII 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 


How do you think the people spent the summer’ What do you think 
they did with the goat and the kid’ 

Much of the land in olden times was covered with dense, dark forests 
of oak. As the forests became larger and larger, what happened to the 
grassland ? 

What do grass-eating animals eat besides grass’ 

How many calves does a cow have each year’ How many lambs 
does a ewe have? How many kids does a goat have? How many whelps 
does a she-wolf have each year? How many cubs does a bear have? 


Why the [Herds Became Smatter 
and Simatler 


Summer passed as summers had passed before. The men 
hunted wild animals and the women gathered plant foods. 
Sometimes the clans of the Eagle tribe met, but most of 
the time each of the clans stayed on its own hunting ground. 


Why the Herds Became Smaller and Smaller 67 


The kid Many-dogs saved grew fast and soon became 
friendly. And the mother goat became more friendly when 
the men stopped teasing her. 

The women always were kind to the goat. When she 
cropped all the grass within her reach, they tethered her in 
a new place. And every day the children fed her roots and 
green stems from their hands. 


The goat jumped and began to fight 


68 The Early Herdsmen 


Day after day Tether-peg thought about trying to milk 
the goat. She remembered tasting the milk of a goat when 
she was only a child. So one day when the kid had had all 
it wanted, Tether-peg petted the goat for a while and then 
she tried to milk her. 

The goat jumped and began to fight, so Tether-peg gave 
her a nice turnip and went away for a while. Then again 
she tried, and again and again, until at last she could milk 
her. But Tether-peg never tried to milk the goat until the 
kid had been suckled. 

Every time Tether-peg milked the goat she gave the milk 
to the children. ‘‘I like goats’ milk,” said Birdikin when 
she tasted it. 

“‘So do I,” said Day’s-eye. 

As the days passed, each child had a taste of goats’ milk. 
And every child said goats’ milk was good. So the women 
kept the goat well fed and she gave more milk. But not 
until the end of summer did they take the kid’s share. 

During the summer the men sometimes complained of the 
scarcity of game. Dense forests covered much of the land 
that was once covered with grass. Lofty oaks spread their 
wide branches, shading the ground from the sun. Each 
year there was less open land. Each year the feeding grounds 
were smaller than the year before. 

Of course many grass-eating animals eat leaves and the 
young shoots of trees. Some of them nibble the bark of 
trees, but nothing pleases them so well as tender green grass. 

“The herds are not what they used to be,” said Many- 
dogs one day to the men when they talked about the scarcity 
of game. 


Why the Herds Became Smaller and Smaller 69 


“They are smaller this year than last,’’ said Big-crow. 

“There are kids and lambs on the mountains,” said Eat- 
well. ‘“‘Let’s hunt them.”’ 

“Don’t touch the kids,” said Tether-peg. ‘‘Don’t touch 
the lambs.” 

‘The wolves take them,’’ added Do-little. ‘We had bet- 
ter eat the kids and lambs than let the wolves have them.” 

“The bears take them,” said Eat-well. 

“We do not kill kids and lambs,” said Many-dogs. “And 
we do not kill their mothers. In the memory of man, none 
of our people have hunted mother animals and their young.”’ 

“Our forefathers hunted cows,” said Eat-well. 

“They lived in the days of large herds,’”’ replied Many- 
dogs. ‘‘No one dreamed in those days the herds would fall 
off as they have.”’ 

“We must have meat,” growled Eat-well. 

“Go hunt the wild bull,’ said Big-crow. 

At this everybody laughed. Everybody knew that Eat- 
well was afraid to hunt the wild bull. 

“Go hunt the wild bull,’ repeated Many-dogs. ‘Eat 
his heart. It may give you courage.” 

Again the people laughed. 

When they became quiet once more, Big-crow said, ‘I 
don’t understand why the herds are so small. Many calves 
and colts are born every summer.’’ 

“Not enough to take the places of those that are killed,”’ 
said Many-dogs. 

Now Many-dogs had never studied arithmetic. There 
was nothing that people called arithmetic then. But Many- 
dogs was learning what it means to subtract day after day. 


70 The Early Herdsmen 


He was learning that the addition of the young to the herds 
was less than the subtractions made by the hunters and the 
beasts of prey. 

“We don’t take many cattle from the herd,” said Do-little. 

“Not at one time,’”’ replied Many-dogs. “But we keep 
on taking day after day.” 

‘So do the wolves and bears,’’ added Gray-wolf. 

‘“‘ Ah, there you have it!’’ cried Many-dogs. ‘The wolves 
and bears are the robbers. They take our food away.” 

“That is what I said,” growled Eat-well. 

“Oh, no,’ replied Big-crow. “‘You wanted to take the 
kids and lambs. You wanted to be like the wolves.” 

‘Don’t touch the mother animals and their young,”’ said 
Tether-peg. ‘‘Do not destroy the herds.” 

‘‘Let’s hunt the wolves,’ said Many-dogs. ‘‘Let’s climb 
the mountains and trap the grizzly bears.” 

‘“‘Go,”’ said Tether-peg. ‘‘Go hunt the wolves! Go hunt 
the bears! Trap the enemies of the herds.”’ 


THINGS TO DO 


If there is any wild land near you, notice where the trees are the largest. 
Notice where they are smallest. How do you account for this? 
Why did the people feel more friendly toward the grass-eating animals 
than toward the wolves and bears? 
Model a bear in clay. 
Draw a picture of a pack of wolves. 
Model in bas-relief a goat and her kid. 
Dramatize part of this story. 
Illustrate one of these lines: 
““Go hunt the wild bull,’ said Big-crow.” 
“ Tether-peg petted the goat.”’ 


Why the People Moved Down the River Valley 71 
XIV 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 

What kind of a coat does a sheep have? What do you have that is 
made of wool? 

Does the sheep keep its coat all the year? What happens to the 
wild sheep’s coat early every summer? What happens to the tame 
sheep’s coat every summer? 

Why does winter come every year? Do you think people always 
knew why the seasons changed’ Do you think they would try to explain 
the change of seasons? 


Why the People Moved Down 
the River Valley 


All summer the people stayed near the foothills. Some- 
times they climbed to the mountain pastures of the wild 
sheep and goats. There the men hunted rams of the flock 
while the women gathered taglocks of wool from the bushes 
where the sheep fed. They twisted and pulled these tag- 
locks and made long threads. 

Sometimes the people camped just below the foothills near 
the highland pastures of the wild cattle. There they made 
pitfalls for bulls and trapped wolves and bears. Game was 
scarce, yet they did not lack food. The days were bright, 
and all summer the people were happy and gay. 

As the days became shorter and shorter a change came 
over the earth. The trees put on their most beautiful gar- 
ments of yellow and purple and red and gold. The moun- 
tains and foothills were all ablaze with purple and golden 
blossoms. For a short time the earth seemed like a beautiful 
fairyland. 


72 The Early Herdsmen 


Then one night the frost nipped the tender plants. It 
robbed the flowers of their colors. The leaves soon became 
sere. Many of the trees let go of their leaves, and they fell 

fluttering to the ground. 
Meanwhile the birds were 
s ae flocking. Many soon started 
ya toward the south. The herds, 
too, were now headed toward 
the winter pastures. 

Seeing these things, the 
people were sad. They did 

not know what they meant. 

They did not know why the 
seasons changed. When the 
plants withered and the leaves 
became sere, they feared the 
earth would never again be 
clothed in green. 

“The plants have withered,”’ 
said Root-digger. ‘I fear we 
never again shall see fresh green 

stems and tender shoots.”’ 
i ashihien tatherad Wasi: oF aul "| miearraid, you are sieht,’ 
ae ae said Spin-a-thread. ‘Just look 
at the trees! They have put off their beautiful garments; 
they are dressed in tatters and rags.”’ 

“Most of the birds have gone,’”’ said Drag-a-load. ‘“‘I 
fear they will never return.’ 

“The herds are going,”’ said Gray-wolf. ‘They are headed 
down the valley.” 


Why the People Moved Down the River Valley 73 


‘They know that Winter is near,’’ said Many-dogs. 

“Why does Summer leave us?” asked Spin-a-thread. 

“She would like to stay,’’ replied Tether-peg, “but cruel 
Winter is very near. He is driving Summer away.” 


“Can’t we help her?’’ asked Drag-a-load. ‘‘Can’t we do 
something to keep Summer with us?”’ 
“We can,” replied the wise woman. ‘‘We can use charms; 


we can sing Summer's praise; we can ask Sky to keep her 
in the land.” 

For a few days the people did their best to keep Summer 
in the land. They sang magical songs in praise of Sum- 
mer; they made many offerings to Sky. But in spite of 
their charms and magical arts, Summer drew farther and 
farther away. 

The very next day the leaders of the clans were called to 
a tribal meeting. The following day all the clans made ready 
to move down the valley. 

The clans moved without haste. They followed the steps 
of the slow-moving cattle as they fed on their way down the 
valley. They had time to hunt small game all along the way. 

For several days the herds moved on. ‘Then they halted 
on a feeding ground close to a dense forest. 

“They will stay in this place,’ said Many-dogs when the 
cattle came toahalt. ‘‘ They can graze on this feeding ground 
and find shelter in the woodlands.”’ 

“There is a good place for a camp,” said Spin-a-thread, 
pointing to the wooded hills on the sunny bank of the river. 

‘“‘Let this be our home,”’ said Tether-peg. ‘‘ The river will 
give us clear water and the woodlands will shelter us from 
the cold winds.” 


on ear 
Bogie: 


: ihe no Ba é oe : ve 
They followed the steps of the slow-moving catile as they fed on their way down 
the valley 


What the Women Found in the Woodlands 75 


THINGS TO DO 


If you can get a taglock of wool, see if you can make it into a thread. 
Tell how Spin-a-thread got her name. 

Notice plants after a frost and tell what changes have taken place. 

Notice whether birds flock together toward the close of summer. Make 
a list of summer birds that go away at the coming of winter. Make a list 
of the birds that stay all winter. 

Dramatize part of thts story. 

Illustrate one of these lines: 

“The women gathered taglocks of wool from the bushes where the 


sheep fed.” 
“They are dressed in tatters and rags.’”’ 
“They followed the steps of the slow-moving cattle.” 


XV 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 


What do you think the people will do to prepare for their winter 


home? 

Have you ever seen a woodpecker? What was he doing? Have you 
ever heard of a green woodpecker? How do you think the woodpecker 
got its name? Do you know any of its nicknames? 

If the people should find a wounded cow, what do you think they 
would do with her? 


What the Women Found in the Woodlands 


“Shall we dig our pits now?” asked Root-digger when 
they had laid down their packs on the spot chosen for a 
camp. ) 

‘Let us first make friends with the gods of the place,” 
replied Tether-peg. 

When this was done, Spin-a-thread said, ‘‘Our tents will 
shelter us for a few days. Let us look for acorns and nuts.” 


76 The Early Herdsmen 


So the women put up their tents on the places marked 
out by Spin-a-thread. Then they took their baskets and went 
to the woodlands in search of acorns and nuts and roots. 

“There are not many acorns this year,’ said Root-digger 
when they had searched a little while. 

“Let us gather all we find,” replied Spin- 
a-thread. ‘Winter will soon be here.”’ 

When they looked for hazel-nuts they were 
disappointed. The crop was light, and the 
squirrels were busy laying in their winter 
stores. 

“We must gather nuts now if we are to 
get our share,’”’ said Drag-a-load when she 
saw what the squirrels were doing. 

“Do you remember the hazel-nuts we found 
last year?”’ asked Root-digger when the women 
complained of the scarcity of nuts. 

‘The bushes were loaded,’ replied Spin-a- 
thread. ‘“‘The branches drooped almost to 
the ground.” 

‘The branches don’t droop this year,’’ said 
Root-digger. “‘I’m afraid the trees and bushes 
will never bear nuts again.” 

Thus the women talked as they roamed through the wood- 
lands. But the children playing among the trees were as 
merry as the woodpeckers and squirrels. They watched the 
green woodpeckers hunt for insects. They watched them 
pick holes in the trees with their hard bills. 

“You're a woodpecker,” called out Little-bear to Pick- 
a-uree. 


A green wood pecker 


What the Women Found in the Woodlands raf: 


“T know it,’’ replied Pick-a-tree. “Sometimes mother 
calls me her little green woodpecker. See! I’m a woodpecker 
now,’’ and the boy made believe he was picking a hole in a 
tree as the woodpeckers do. 

“Guess what I am,”’ said Little-bear. 

Before Pick-a-tree could answer, a wild creature bounded 
past and dashed through the underbrush. 

“It’s a calf!’’ shouted Little-bear. “Let’s catch it.”’ 

The boys were off with a bound. 

“Come back! Come back!”’ called Spin-a-thread. 

The boys were sorry to give up the chase, but they came 
back when called. When they came near where their mothers 
were, they saw them standing around some big animal which 
was lying on the ground. 

‘“What is it?’’ asked Little-bear when he came near. 

“A cow,” replied Spin-a-thread. 


“A cow!” cried Little-bear. ‘“‘Why doesn’t she run?”’ 
“She can’t run,” replied Spin-a-thread. ‘‘She can’t even 
hobble.”’ 


Then Spin-a-thread told the children how they found the 
cow in the bushes with her calf. 


‘“That’s the calf we saw,” said Little-bear. ‘‘We wanted 
to catch it.” 
“It’s a sucking calf,” said Spin-a-thread. “It will come 


back to its mother.” 

By this time the women had tethered the cow to a young 
tree. ‘‘She’s thirsty,’ said Tether-peg. ‘‘ Fetch some water 
for her.”’ 

Drag-a-load ran to the river for some water and soon 
returned and gave it to the cow. 


78 The Early Herdsmen 


“See how she 
drinks!’”’ said Drag- 
a-load. ‘‘She has 
had mo! “water: tor 
days.” 

When the cow 
drank the water she 
, turned her big eyes 
~ to Drag-a-load as if 
to ask for more. So 
Drag-a-load brought 
her more water, and 
the cow drank every 


drop. 
‘‘She wants to 
tiiank Tine, “ssaid 


Drag-a-load when 
the dumb creature 
looked up with her 
big wistful eyes. 

‘Be kind to the 
cow,’ said ‘Tether- 
ae peg. ‘‘Then she will 
“It’s a calf!” shouted Little-bear be kind to Ou. ' 

“Take this turnip, cow,’ said Root-digger. 

The hungry creature ate the turnip, and again she looked 
her thanks. 

“Don’t tell Eat-well she is here,” said Day’s-eye. 

“Don’t tell Do-little,”’ said Little-bear 

“Say nothing of this to any of the men at present, 


bed 


said 


How Tether-peg Learned to Milk the Cow 79 


Tether-peg. ‘‘The Mother of the woodlands has put her 
in our keeping. We must take care of her.” 


THINGS TO DO 


If there are acorns on the oaks near you, taste them and see if they are 
good to eat. What kind of an oak has the best acorns? If you have ever 
gathered nuts of any kind, tell a story about tt. 

Model in clay a woodpecker pecking at a tree. Modela squirrel carrying 
a nut. 

Dramatize part of this story. 

Illustrate one of these lines: 

‘““A wild creature bounded past.” 
““* She wants to thank me,’ said Drag-a-load.”’ 


XVI 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 


Do you think the women will be able to keep the cow? Why, or why 
not? 

Do you think the dogs will feel friendly toward the cow and calf? 
Why, or why not? 


How Tether-peg Learned to Milk the Cow 


Nothing was said about the cow when the men came back 
to the camp. They were talking about a herd of wild horses 
that had come to the feeding grounds. 

Nobody noticed when Tether-peg stooped and whispered 
to Seizer and Howler. Nobody noticed when she left the 
camp with the two dogs at her heels. 

“Stop!” cried Tether-peg to the dogs when they came 
near the spot where the cow was tethered. Then she crept 


80 The Early Herdsmen 


up very softly. The calf was with the cow. It was sleeping 
quietly beside its mother. 

Now Tether-peg wanted to keep the calf. So she tied 
one end of a thong to a tree. Then quick as a flash she 
tied the other end around the calf’s neck. 


The calf sprang upon its feet. It tried to get away 


How Tether-peg Learned to Milk the Cow 81 


When the calf felt the touch of her hand, it awoke and 
sprang upon its feet. It tried to get away. It began to 
bawl, and the cow threatened Tether-peg with her horns. 

Tether-peg withdrew a few steps, and the calf went close 
to its mother. Both soon became quiet, so Tether-peg went 
back and spoke to the dogs. 

‘“T have work for you, Seizer,”’ she said. ‘I have work 
for you, Howler. I want you to keep guard here tonight. 
Don’t let anything touch that cow. Don’t let anything 
touch her calf.” 

The dogs pricked up their ears when they saw the cow 
and calf. Their hair stood on end. Both dogs were eager 
to spring upon them. 

“No, Howler. No, Seizer,’”’ said Tether-peg. ‘They are 
our friends. Don’t hurt them. Keep off the wolves. Keep 
off the bears. Stand guard here tonight.”’ 

With these words the wise woman left the dogs not far 
from the cow and calf. There they kept watch all through 
the night while the cow and calf slept. 


‘“Where is Seizer?’’ asked Many-dogs next morning. ‘I 
don’t see him anywhere and I don’t see Howler.” 
“They are helping me,” said Tether-peg. ‘You can have 


them before very long if you will let me have Bushy-tail.”’ 

Many-dogs thought nothing more about the dogs, for 
the women often needed their help. He called the pack, 
and men and dogs were soon away to the woodlands. 

Now Tether-peg called Bushy-tail and went to the place 
where the cow was tethered. 

Seizer and Howler wagged their tails when they saw 
Tether-peg coming. She praised them for keeping watch 


82 The Early Herdsmen 


“Keep guard here today,” said Tether-peg 


all night. She patted each dog on the head. ‘‘Good dogs,”’ 
said the wise woman. ‘‘Now go and hunt for yourselves.”’ 

‘The dogs were off with a bound, but Bushy-tail pricked 
up her ears. Her hair stood on end. So Tether-peg talked 
to Bushy-tail just as she had talked to Seizer and Howler. 

“Lie down here,”’ said the wise woman, pointing to a spot 
not far from the cow’s head. 

Bushy-tail looked puzzled, for she was not used to 
lying down near a cow. But her mistress had spoken, and 
Bushy-tail knew it was best to obey. 

‘Keep guard here today,” said Tether-peg. 

This time Bushy-tail understood what her mistress asked 
her to do. But the calf awoke and was greatly frightened, 


How Tether-peg Learned to Milk the Cow 83 


and the cow began to bawl. So Tether-peg brought her 
some fresh water and a few nice carrots. 

The cow drank the water and ate the carrots. While she 
was eating, Tether-peg sat down and began to sing in a low, 
sweet tone. 

The cow looked up and hstened. 

Very likely this was the first time a cow had heard such a 
sweet song. Be that as it may, this wounded cow liked 
Tether-peg’s singing. So the wise woman kept on singing 
until the calf as well as the cow seemed to be comforted. 

Tether-peg soon went back to the place where her sisters 
were gathering acorns. ‘Don’t go near the cow today,” 
she said to them. “I will take care of her.” 

No one but Tether-peg went near the cow that day. It 
was the same the next day and the day after that. 

Each day the wise woman watered the cow and gave her 
fresh grass and turnips. Each day Tether-peg sang to her 
until she no longer was frightened. 

several times each day the cow suckled her calf, and 
Tether-peg watched the calf. ‘‘He can eat grass,” thought 
she. ‘‘He doesn’t need his mother’s milk.”’ 

Another day when the calf had been suckled, Tether-peg 
thought, ‘‘Cow’s milk must be good. I wish the children 
could have some. The calf has had enough for today. I 
wonder if the cow will let me milk her.”’ 

First she gave the cow a nice carrot and patted her head 
and stroked her neck. Then she sang very softly while she 
tried to milk her. 

At first the cow would not give down her milk. But 
Tether-peg was not discouraged. She kept on singing and 


84 The Early Herdsmen 


she kept on trying until at last she got a few drops of milk. 

One day Tether-peg was able to get a big bowl of milk 
from the cow. When she took it to her tent, she said to 
herself, ‘The time has now come to tell the men.” 

That evening Tether-peg told the men about the cow and 
calf. 

“The wolves will get her,’’ said Big-crow. 

“Not while the dogs keep watch,” replied Tether-peg. 


“‘Game is scarce,’ said Eat-well. ‘‘Let’s kill her and 
have meat.’ 

The wise woman shook her head. 

“Why not kill her?”’ asked Big-crow. ‘‘She can’t run 


with the herd.”’ 

All this time Many-dogs was silent. He felt quite sure 
Tether-peg had a good reason for wanting to keep the cow. 
What it was he could not make out. So now he asked, ‘‘ Why 
do you want to tether this cow?” 

Stepping back to her tent, Tether-peg brought out a bowl 
of fresh milk. ‘‘This is good food,” she said. 

Even then Many-dogs did not understand. He thought 
the milk was the milk of the goat. He never dreamed people 
would ever get milk from a cow. 

Spin-a-thread was quicker to get the idea. ‘‘Where did 
you get that milk?”’ she asked. ‘‘The children drank the 
goat’s milk.”’ 

“T milked the cow,” said Tether-peg. 

“Milked the cow!” cried Many-dogs. 

“Milked the cow!” cried Big-crow and Gray-wolf. 

‘Yes,’ replied Tether-peg. ‘‘I milked the cow. I have 
made friends with her. Let us protect the poor creature. 


How the Women Prepared for Winter 85 


She will more than repay us for our trouble by giving us her 
mitk.”” 

And so Tether-peg was able to save the life of the wounded 
cow. When the wounds were healed, the cow could walk. 
Then she and her calf were brought to the camp. 


THINGS TO DO 


If you have ever milked a cow, tell how you did tt. 
Model a cow and a calf in bas-relief. 
Act in pantomime part of this story and let the class guess what it is. 
Illustrate one of these lines: 
“Both dogs were eager to spring.”’ 
‘““Go and hunt for yourselves.” 


XVII 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 

What animals do you know that store nuts for the winter: How 
do they do it? 

Why should nuts and roots be dried before being stored for winter? 
Have you ever dried any vegetables or fruit? 

What kind of a shelter do you think these people would have in winter? 

Can you think how people measured a foot in length before they had 
foot rules? 

Do you know a way of making a perfect circle? 


flow the Women Prepared for Winter 


“There’s a nice patch of turnips on the next hill,’ said 
Root-digger. ‘‘ Don’t you want to get some?”’ 

“Yes,” said Drag-a-load. ‘‘Let’s pull all we find. Let’s 
bring them to the camp and store them.”’ 


86 The Early Herdsmen 


The women went to the turnip patch and soon came back 


with their arms full of turnips. 


The acorns and nuts are safe from the rain 
and snow 


“It’s cold,” said Drag- 
a-load as she threw down 
her load and warmed her 
hands by the fire. 

“T was cold last night,”’ 
said Root-digger. ‘I shall 
be glad when we can sleep 
im. pits,” 

While the women were 
talking, Tether-peg came 
from tending the cow and 
calf. She stopped a mo- 
ment where the hazelnuts 
were drying and stooped 
down to stir them. 

‘They are nearly dry,” 
said Root-digger. 

“They are dry,’ said 
Tether-peg. 

‘‘Let’s store them now,”’ 
said Spin-a-thread. ‘‘ Then 
we can dig our pits.” 


‘Fetch my big basket, Pick-a-tree,’’ said Drag-a-load. 
Pick-a-tree brought a big basket to his mother, and 
Little-bear brought one to Tether-peg. All the children 
helped their mothers scoop up the acorns and nuts. 
‘“Where are you going to put them?” asked Day’s-eye. 
“In the trees,’’ replied Spin-a-thread. 


How the Women Prepared for Winter 87 


9? 


“There is a good place for a basket,’’ said Drag-a-load as 
she pointed to a forked branch of an oak close to her tent. 

‘“There’s a good place,” said Little-bear. ‘‘It’s up there 
where that branch forks.”’ 

That 1s" 200d-place, 
this basket up there.” 

It was all they could do to lift the big baskets up to where 
the branches forked. But they managed to do 
it, and then they made covers for them of 
interlaced twigs coated with clay. 

“Now the acorns and nuts are safe from 
the rain and snow,” said Drag-a-load when the 
last basket was covered. 

While her sisters were covering the baskets, 
Spin-a-thread marked out the spots for the 
pits. ‘‘This spot is yours, Drag-a-load,’’ she 
said. ‘‘This peg marks the center of the 
roof hole.” 

Then she showed each of her sisters the tent 
peg that marked the center of the roof hole. 

‘“How large shall I make the hole?” asked 
Root-digger. 

‘““A foot and a half every direction from the 
peg,’ repled Spin-a-thread. 

Each woman then placed the heel of her foot 
close up to the peg. In this way each marked 
out the roof hole of her pit. 

“T’ve found a new way,” said Drag-a-load. ‘‘Do you 
want to see how I do it?”’ 

“Yes,” said Root-digger. 


y 


said Tether-peg. ‘‘We will put 


Digging sticks 


88 The Early Herdsmen 


“That’s a good circle,” said Spin-a-thread. ‘‘How did 
you make it?” 

“This way,” said Drag-a-load, putting a rod close to the 
peg that marked the center. Then she held one end close 
to the peg while she moved the other until she marked out a 
circle on the ground. 

“T’m going to try it that way,’ 
me take your rod.” 

Drag-a-load let Root-digger take her rod, and Root- 
digger marked out a perfect circle. The other women 
measured rods a foot and a half long. Each then made a 
perfect circle to mark the place of the roof hole. 

“Get your root picks,” said Spin-a-thread. 

Each woman now found her root pick. 

‘“‘Now strike!’’ called Spin-a-thread. ‘“‘Loosen the earth 

DB with your picks.” 
ae All the women — struck 
with their picks, marking the 
time with a simple song. 

‘Toss out the loose earth,”’ 
called Spin-a-thread when they had been working 
a little while. 

The women tossed out the loose earth, which 
fell, thud after thud. 

“T’ve begun the walls,’’ said Drag-a-load soon after they 
took their picks again. “I’m going to give them a slant 
just like the slant of my tent.” 

Again the sound of the picks was heard. Again the loose 
earth was tossed out and fell with thud after thud. Before 
night big piles of loose earth could be seen by each roof hole. 


said Root-digger. ‘Let 


A root pick 


How the Women Prepared for Winter 89 


The next day they went on with the work. When they 
had been working some time, Spin-a-thread said, ‘My pit 
is deep enough. See, I can stand up straight, and my head is 
just below the roof hole.” 

‘““Mine is deep enough,” said Root-digger. ‘‘But there 
isn’t room to lie down.”’ 

Now Tether-peg did not dig her own pit. Her sisters dug 
it for her. The wise woman had other things to do, and her 
sisters were glad to help her. Now she came in from a walk 
through the woodlands and looked down into the pits. 

“Take my hand,” said Spin-a-thread. “I want to get out 
and see how each one is working.” 

Tether-peg took her sister by the hand, and Spin-a-thread 
climbed out of her pit. 

““Come and see me,” called Drag-a-load. ‘See, I can le 
down without touching the walls.” 

“Your pit is large enough,” said Spin-a-thread, and every 
one thought the clan mother was right. For in those days 
no one ever thought of making a larger pit. 

Soon all the women came out of their pits and sat down 
to rest. 

“Ts this the door?’’ asked Day’s-eye as she peeked down 
through a roof hole. 

“No, child,” replied Spin-a-thread. ‘That is the roof 
hole. We will cover it over with wattle and daub.” 

“How can we get into the pits?’”’ asked Day’s-eye. 

“Through the door,” answered Spin-a-thread. 

‘‘Where is the door?”’ asked Birdikin. 

“Tt isn’t made yet,” replied Spin-a-thread. ‘‘I’ll mark 
out the places for the doors now.” 


90 The Early Herdsmen 


All the children watched while Spin-a-thread marked a 
place for the door of each pit. All watched while the women 
tunneled a passage to the bottom of each pit. 

The tunnels were not large. They were just large enough 
for a man to crawl through. 
No one thought of making 
them larger in those days. 

‘“Wemust strengthen the 
walls of the pits. We must 
line them with wattle and 
daub,” said Spin-a-thread. 

Some of the women now 
went for hazel branches. 
Others went to the river 
bottoms to dig up some 
clay. They wove a strong 
framework of branches 
next the walls and they 
coated the framework with 
wet clay. 

Not until the clay had dried did they move into the pits. 
Then all were glad to move in, for Winter was close at hand. 


A busket granary 


THINGS TO DO 


Measure your own foot and compare it with the length of a foot rule. 
Do you know any one whose foot ts the length of a foot rule ? 

Make a perfect circle by using your pencil fora rod. Find out the mean- 
ing of the word “radius.” It once meant rod. Tell why. 

Find a tree that would be a good place to store a basket of nuts. 

Tell why the walls of the pit had to be strengthened. 


Why the People Were Frightened One Dark Night 91 


Have you ever heard of a well caving in? What does tt mean? Tell 


why it is not safe for children to dig deep holes in the sand. 
If you wish to make a pit dwelling, make one of clay and put it in the 


sand box. 
Dramatize part of this story. 
Illustrate one of these lines: 
“She stooped down to stir them.” 
““<Tt’s up there where that branch forks. 


Y Mare Je f 


XVITI 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 


Have you ever heard stories about a time when it was always sum- 


mer? Are there any places where it is warm all the year? 
When are people most likely to be afraid, in daylight or in darkness? 


Why the People Were Frightened 
One Dark Night 

‘Night is coming on fast,’’ said Tether-peg the day after 
they moved into the pits. 

“Yes,’’ replied Spin-a-thread. “‘Children, run and gather 
dry branches. Bring them in before it is dark.” 

“The wind is cold,’’ said Drag-a-load as she stirred the 
soup in her cooking pot. ‘Winter will soon be here.” 

‘Winter is close at hand,’ added Tether-peg. 

“T’m not glad to see him,” said Root-digger. 

“Nobody is glad to see Winter,” said Tether-peg. ‘‘No- 
body loves the dark monster who drives Summer away.” 


yy) 


‘Can we keep the cow much longer?”’ asked Drag-a-load. 


Men and dogs could now be seen coming through the dim shadows 


Why the People Were Frightened One Dark Night 93 


“She is our friend,’’ answered Tether-peg. ‘‘We must 
take care of her.” 

“Take this,’ said Root-digger, handing the cow a turnip. 

“Tf it gets cold, we_ shall 
need the turnips ourselves,” said 
Drag-a-load. ‘‘We can’t give 
them to a cow.” 

“We can feed her now,” said 
Tether-peg. “‘And we can hunt 
for more roots.” 

“There’s a patch of carrots 
across the river,’ said Root- 


igger. 
d ve - An unfinished cooking pot 
I found a patch today, 
added Spin-a-thread. ‘‘Let’s get them before the snow 
comes.”’ 


“Bring in ali the roots you can find,’ said Tether-peg. 
‘We can give the cow grass and roots as long as she gives 
us milk.” 

‘““We can feed the cow,” said Drag-a-load. ‘‘But that 
calf gives us nothing but trouble.” 

“That is just what I think,” said Root-digger. 

“The calf picks its own food,” said Tether-peg. ‘‘We 
have all of its mother’s milk.”’ 

“He will freeze when Winter comes,” said Drag-a-load. 
““A calf can’t live away from the herd.’ 

Men and dogs could now be seen coming through the dim 
shadows. A moment later all were gathered by the fires just 
outside the pits. 

“Night has settled down fast,”’ said Big-crow. 


94 The Early Herdsmen 


“Yes,” said Tether-peg. ‘‘Darkness is waxing stronger 
and stronger. Each day there is less lght.”’ 

“Has it always been so?”’ asked Gray-wolf. ‘“‘Has Winter 
always come to the earth and driven Summer away?” 

“Once upon a time,” replied Tether-peg, ‘Summer stayed 
upon earth all the year. But for many years a dark monster 
has come and driven her out of the land.” 

‘“Let’s help Summer,” said Big-crow. “Let’s drive the 
dark monster away.”’ 

“We must do that,” said Tether-peg. ‘‘'We must use 
charms to keep Summer with us. We must use all our 
magical arts and drive Winter away.” 

That night there was no moon. The stars did not shine. 
But the fire blazed cheerily and hghted up the camp. And 
the people sat around the fire and told riddles and guessed 
them. 

“Who is the dark monster that drives Summer away?” 
asked Gray-wolf. 

“IT know who he is,” said Spin-a-thread. 

Others said they knew. 

“Let the children guess it,’’ said Tether-peg. 

“It’s Darkness,”’ said Day’s-eye. 

“It’s Winter,” said Little-bear. 

“You are right, Little-bear,’’ said Gray-wolf. 

“Both are right,’’ added Tether-peg. ‘‘Winter is Dark- 
ness. Summer is Light.” 

‘“Who is the big wolf that has caught all the stars in the 
sky?”’ asked Spin-a-thread. 

“T know that big wolf,” said Big-crow. 

“Let the children guess it,’’ said Tether-peg. 


, 


Why the People Were Frightened One Dark Night 95 


“It’s Darkness,’’ said Pick-a-tree. 

“It’s Night,” said Birdikin. 

“You are right, Birdikin,” said Spin-a-thread. ‘‘ Night is 
the big wolf.” 

“Both are right,’’ said Tether-peg. ‘Darkness is a big 
wolf. It swallows the moon and the stars.”’ 


“The fire is low,” said Spin-a-thread. ‘‘Let’s pile on fresh 
branches.” 

When this was done, the people stood and peered into the 
dark night. 


“I -don’telike at, said’ Drag-a-load. “It’s the blackest 
night I have ever seen.”’ 

“The dark monster is out tonight,’ said Many-dogs. 
“He is out with all his tribe.”’ 

‘He is here!’’ cried Spin-a-thread. ‘‘He has swallowed 
the sky! He has swallowed the earth! Nothing is left 
beyond the light of our camp fire.” 

The words had scarcely passed her lips when the people 
were startled at a strange sound. It seemed to come from 
creatures of the air, but the sound was like that of yelping 
dogs. 

‘What can it be?”’ whispered Big-crow as soon as he dared 
to speak. 

“It’s the yelping of dogs,’”’ whispered Gray-wolf. 

“Dogs!”’ exclaimed Big-crow. ‘‘Dogs can’t fly.” 

As the strange creatures came nearer and nearer, the 
people turned pale. They gasped for breath. Even the 
bravest men felt helpless. Even the wise woman feared 
the dark monster had come to swallow them. For darkness 
covered earth and sky. It hid everything from sight. All 


96 The Early Herdsmen 


the people could do was to huddle together and seek refuge 
in their pits. 


THINGS TO DO 


What zs darkness? What happens to tt when you turn on the light? 
Is darkness anything to be afraid of ? 

How ts the day lighted? How 1s the night lighted? What kind of Ivghi 
do you have tn your house ? 

Tell why people once thought winter was a dark monster. 

Dramatize thts story. 

Illustrate one of these lines: 

“Men and dogs could now be seen coming through the dim shadows.”’ 


“The people stood and peered into the dark night.” 


XIX 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 

Can you guess what it was that frightened the people? Do you 
think they will find out what it was? If not, do you see how they might 
tell a strange story about it? 

Have you ever seen a small bird riding on the back of a large bird 
or on the back of a sheep or cow? Do you know of any birds that do this? 

Have you heard a story of little birds riding on the backs of big cranes 
as they flew away? Do you think the story is true? 

Why did people once think that the cuckoo changed into a hawk in 
winter’? Is it true? 


Oueer Mistakes about the Migration 
of birds 
There was little sleep that night. When morning came, 


Tether-peg was first to peep out through the narrow door way. 
She was the first of all the clan to behold the dawning light. 


Queer Mistakes about the Migration of Birds 97 


‘““Hail! Hail!’’ cried Tether-peg when she saw the first 
glimmering of day. 

The people heard the glad shout and crept out of the pits. 
They arose and joined with Tether-peg in a grateful song of 
praise. With glad hearts all sang, ‘‘ Hail, Hail, rosy Dawn! 
Hail, kindly light!” 

“Dawn has driven Darkness away,” said Many-dogs as 
he looked joyfully at the rosy dawn now hghting up earth 
and sky. 

“Praise Dawn!” cried Tether-peg. ‘She has brought us 
a new day.” 

“T’m glad, oh, I’m so glad,” said Spin-a-thread. I was 
afraid we should never again see the light.’ 

“T love Dawn,” said Root-digger. ‘‘She drives fear away.”’ 

Now for the first time since the evening before, the people 
dared talk of what happened. 

“Why were dogs flying in the sky?”’ asked Big-crow. 

Many-dogs shook his head. 

“Why did they come yelping over our heads?” asked 
Gray-wolf. 

No one answered the question. 

‘‘Never before have I heard such a sound overhead,”’ 


said Spin-a-thread. “It must mean something. Tell us, 
Tether-peg, what does this sound mean?”’ 
“It’s a strange sound,” said Tether-peg. “I know not 


what it means.”’ 
“Can any one tell what it means?” asked Gray-wolf. 
‘“My mother may be able to do so,”’ answered Tether-peg. 
‘““She is wise. She knows the cries of all the creatures of 
the air.” 


¥, 


“Ta 


A hail, rosy Dawn! Hail, kindly light!” 


Queer Mistakes about the Migration of Birds 99 


“Let us send messengers to her,” said Many-dogs. ‘‘ Let 
us learn what this strange thing means.” 

Big-crow and Gray-wolf were chosen to go. Before they 
started, Tether-peg said, ‘Go first to the clan of my mother. 
Bear good tidings to her. Answer her questions. Tell her 
what happened. Ask her if she heard the strange sound and 
if she can tell what it means. Now go, and on the way 
greet other clans of our tribe.”’ 

While the messengers were away, the people wondered 
about the strange creatures of the air. 

No one knew at this time that there was nothing to fear. 
No one knew that the sound lke the yelping of dogs was 
made by a flock of bean geese. No one knew that these 
geese always choose a dark night for their flight to their 
winter home. 

When Pick-a-tree asked, ‘‘Where have the birds gone?’’ 
Drag-a-load answered, ‘The big birds have carried them 
away on their backs.”’ 

Day’s-eye missed the cuckoos. 

‘““Where are the cuckoos?’’ she asked. ‘‘Have they all 
gone away?” 

“They have not gone away,’ answered Tether-peg 
“The cuckoos have turned into hawks.’’ And Tether-peg 
thought she was speaking the truth, for the cuckoo looks 
like a young hawk. 

‘Where are the swallows?” asked Birdikin. 

‘They are in the bottom of the ponds,’’ Tether-peg replied. 
“They are hiding in crevices of the rocks.”’ 

And so the time passed until the third day, when the 
messengers returned. 


100 The Early Herdsmen 


‘All the clans heard the strange sound,” said Big-crow 
when the people gathered around the messengers. 

“Does any one know what it means?” asked Spin-a- 
thread. 

“No one knows what it means,’’ rephed Big-crow. 

“What did they say about it?’’ asked Many-dogs. 

a > “They said it was 
| a warning,’ rephed 
Gray-wolf. 

‘Did: try mother 
say this?’’ asked 
Tether-peg. 

‘She did,’ answered 
Gray-wolf. 

‘What was the look 
on her face as_ she 
spoke?”’ asked the wise 
woman. 

a ae “The look on her 
face?’’ repeated Gray-wolf. “The look on her face was a 
look of dread.”’ 


THINGS TO DO 


Make a list of the birds that stay tn your netghborhood all winter. What 
do they have for food? \Where do they find shelter ? 

Find out whether there are any birds that seek shelter among the rocks in 
winter. 

Find out all you can about the bean geese. 

Dramatize thts story. 

Draw a picture of a flock of wild geese. 

Model in clay some bird you know. 


How the People Lived in Their Winter Home 101 
XX 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 


During which part of the winter would the people be likely to have 
most food? Why? What plant foods could they find in winter? What 
animals could the men hunt? 

Why did people say that in winter the trees were dressed in tatters 
and rags? If snow rested upon the trees, what do you think the people 
would say? 

What do you think the people would say about the god and goddess 
of the woodlands in winter? In summer? 

Which can stand the cold weather the better, wild horses or cattle? 
How can wild animals find food when the ground is covered with snow? 


flow the People Lived in Their 
Venter [Lome 


All went well in early winter. The men hunted wild 
horses and cattle. They hunted red deer in the woodlands. 
They set traps for wolves and bears. They tried to protect 
the herds. 

The women worked about the camp; they tended the 
fires and cooking pits and made skin garments. They looked 
after the tethered creatures and milked the cow and goat. 

At first the dogs did not take kindly to the tethered crea- 
tures. All their lives they had hunted wild cattle, and so 
had wild dogs before them. . From the earliest times wild 
dogs had lived by the chase. 

But you know that the dog loves his master. He soon 
learns to obey. So all the dogs, little by little, made friends 
with the tethered creatures. When wolves prowled about at 
night, all the dogs sprang up to defend them. 


102 The Early Herdsmen 


The cow still limped when she walked, but she picked 
her own food when given a long tether. The calf, too, 
picked his own food. He was kept out of reach of his mother. 

The calf was so wild the children were told to keep away 
from him. But they played with the kid and sometimes 
were able to pet the goat. 

There was little snow in early winter. So the women 
went out to the woodlands in search of acorns and nuts. 
They did not find many, for the crop had been light. But 
they gathered all they could find. 

One day when the children were out with their mothers, 
they passed an ash tree where the rooks nested. The leaves 
of the tree had all fallen. The nests were in plain sight. 

“Caw! caw! caw!’ cried Little-bear. ‘‘That’s what the 
rook says.” 

All the children flapped their arms and played they were 
rooks flying to and from their nests. 

Every day the children learned something about animals 
and birds. For in pleasant weather they were out in the 
woodlands, and in stormy weather they ustened to the men 
talk about the chase. 

“T’ll be glad to have a little snow,” said Big-crow one 
day when they were talking about wolves. ‘Wolves are 
prowling about the camp. Snow will show up their tracks.”’ 

When the people came out of their pits the next morning, 
the ground was covered with snow. So men and dogs at 
once set out to track the wolves to their dens. 

“Earth has put on a beautiful winter garment,’ said 
Spin-a-thread as she looked up and down the valley now 
covered with snow. 


How the People Lived 


‘““Look at the trees!’ 
cried Little-bear. ‘‘ Look 
at the firs and oaks!”’ 

“They have put on 
white garments,’ said 
Birdikin. 

“Why don’t all the 
trees wear white gar- 
ments?’’ asked Day’s- 
eye. 
“They have dropped 
their leaves,” replied 
Tether-peg. ‘“‘ They can- 


not hold up as much — 
snow as the firs and | 


oaks,”’ 

“The oaks hold fast 
to their sere brown 
leaves,”’ 
thread. 
sood shelter-tor the 
herds.”’ 


“Tf it turns cold they | 


will need a good shelter,”’ 
said Root-digger. 


“The snow has covered | 


the feeding grounds,”’ 
added Drag-a-load. ** The 
cattle will have poor feed- 
ing while the snow lasts.”’ 


added Spin-a- i 
“They make a> 


in Their Winter Home 


The children flapped their arms and 
played they were rooks 


103 


104 The Early Herdsmen 


’ 


‘There is some tall grass standing above the snow,”’ said 
Spin-a-thread. 

“The cattle can eat the moss on the trees,’”’ said Root- 
digger. ‘‘They can eat young branches.”’ 

» “ Horses paw the snow from the grass,” said Little-bear. 
“T’ve seen them do it.” 

‘Horses can stand the cold very well,”’ 
said Tether-peg. 

“Cattle will do well in this 
weather, but if 1t should turn very 
cold, it will be hard for them.”’ 
“The tethered creatures 

need our help now,” 

added Spin-a-thread. 
‘“Let’s go and brush 
away the snow so 
they can get to 
the grass.”’ 

The women and 
children took birch 
branties and 
swept the snow 
from the spots 
where the animals 
were tethered. 
They brought 
wisps of dry grass 
to the cow and 
they gave her 


They swept the snow from the spots where the animals : 
were tethered some turnip tops. 


How the People Lived in Their Winter Home 105 


In this way women and children took the first steps in 
taming the herds. No one knew at that time what a great 
work they were doing. They did not know it themselves. 
They were simply doing the work of the day. They were 
being kind to the dumb creatures they had brought to their 
homes. 


THINGS TO DO 


Notice what trees drop their leaves first. What trees hold fast their leaves 
longest? What trees give the best shelter in winter? Why? 
Name several birds that belong to the crow family. Find something 
about each of these birds. 
What animals do you know by their tracks? 
Learn what you can about the brooms people had before they learned to 
make the kind we have. 
Tell a story of something you have today that you could not have unless 
the grass-eating animals had been tamed. 
Dramatize part of this story. 
Illustrate one of these lines: 
““All the children flapped their arms and played they were rooks.”’ 
“* They have put on white garments.’” 


XXI 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 


At what time of the year are the days longest? At what time are 
they shortest? When are the nights longest? When shortest? 

Why are not the days and nights the same length all the year? 

At what season is the sun highest at noon? When lowest? Can you 
think why the sun seems to be higher at one season than at another? 
Do you think people have always known why? 

What stories do you think the people might tell to explain why the 
sun was low in the sky at noon? 


106 The Early Herdsmen 


Tlow the People Explained the Dark 
Days of Winter 


Soon the nights were as long as a summer day, and the 
days as short as a summer night. Some days dark clouds 
hid the sun all day long. 

When the sun had not shone for several days, Root-digger 
said, “‘No longer does Sun look down upon us. No longer 
does he light up the earth.” 

‘He is no longer our friend,’’ added Drag-a-load. 

“Speak not thus of kind Sun,’’ said Tether-peg. ‘He is 
still our friend.” 

“Why doesn’t he show himself?’ asked Root-digger. 
““Why doesn’t he watch over us as he used to do?” 

‘He is weary,” replied Tether-peg. ‘‘Winter is waging 
war upon him. Winter is waging a cruel war upon all the 
gods of light. For many days the dark monster has been 
trying to swallow Sun.”’ 

When the sun did come out from behind gray clouds, 
it appeared lower down in the sky than in summer. None 
of the people understood why, but they did their best to 
explain it. 

‘What is the matter with Sun?”’ asked Big-crow one day 
when the sun came out from behind dark clouds. “It is 
midday, yet see where he is!” 

“Sun is lame,’’ answered Many-dogs. ‘‘He can’t climb 
very high.”’ 

“Did the dark monster hurt him?’’ asked Big-crow. 

‘“Yes,’’ answered Many-dogs. ‘‘The monster is fighting 
him day and night.”’ 


How the People Explained the Dark Days of Winter 107 


“Kill him!” cried Little-bear. ‘Kill the dark monster! 
Make him let go of Sun!” 

Many-dogs smiled. Then he said to the child, ‘‘No man 
that lives can kill this monster. It is the work of a god.”’ 

“It is Sky’s work,”’ added Tether-peg. ‘‘None but Sky 
is mighty enough to kill the dark monster.” 

“T fear Sky cannot do it,”’ said Big-crow. ‘See, even now 
the dark monster has hidden Sky’s bright tent.”’ 

“Why does the dark monster make war?” asked Day’s- 
eye. “Why does he try to swallow Sun?” 


“He loves darkness,’’ replied Tether-peg. ‘‘The dark 
monster hates light.” 
‘““Dawn' loves light,’”’ said Day’s-eye. ‘Every morning 


she brings us light.”’ 

“Yes, child,” said Tether-peg. ‘‘Dawn is our friend. 
She chases Darkness away from the earth. She brings 
Sun back to Sky.” 

“Does Sky have many friends?’’ asked Pick-a-tree. 

‘““Moon is his friend,”’ said Drag-a-load. 

‘The stars are his friends,’’ added Root-digger. 

“Everything that brings light is his friend,”’ said Tether-peg. 

‘Ts fire his friend?’’ asked Little-bear. 

“Yes, child,” replied Tether-peg. ‘Just as fire lights up 
our dwellings, so Sky and his friends light up the big tent 
that covers all the earth.” 

“Darkness makes war on them all,” said Many-dogs. 
“Sometimes I fear Sun will never again travel over his path 


in the sky.” 
“So do I,” added Gray-wolf. ‘And I’m afraid Moon 


will never come back to light up the dark night.” 


They were happy in trying to make the sun shine and fill the earth with light 


How the People Explained the Dark Days of Winter 109 


“Ts Darkness stronger than Sky?” asked Little-bear. 
‘“‘Does he have as many friends as Sky?” 

“Darkness has many friends,’ answered Tether-peg. 
‘““Wherever they are, they always wage war upon the friends 
of Sky.” 

‘“‘Have they been fighting long?”’ asked Pick-a-tree. 

“Since time began,’ replied the wise woman. 

“This fight cannot go on forever,’ added Many-dogs. 
“There will come a day when one will win.” 

As he spoke, the people shuddered. They feared the day 
when the sky would fall and darkness would cover the earth. 

“Let us help Sky,” said Tether-peg. ‘‘Let us do all we 
can to fill earth and sky with a clear light.”’ 

So again they kindled the sacred fire and made offerings 
to the great god Sky. And for a time they lost their fears. 
They were happy in trying to make the sun shine and fill the 
earth with light. 


THINGS TO DO 


Notice what time the sun rises. Notice what time it sets. Tell how long 
the day 1s. How long 1s the night? 
Dramatize this story. 
Illustrate one of these lines: 
““What ts the matter with Sun?’ asked Big-crow.”’ 
“Let us do all we can to fill earth and sky with a clear light.’”’ 


AA 
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 


What do you think wild animals would do in a hard storm? How 
could the people keep the tethered animals from freezing? 
Why can a herd of animals keep warm better than one or two? 


110 The Early Herdsmen 
flow the People Protected the Tethered 


Creatures during a Storm 


Soon a big storm set in. The air was filled with blinding 
snow. The north wind blew fierce blasts and piled up great 
drifts. The herds sought shelter in the woods, and the people 


wh 


The creatures shivered wiih the cold 


went into their pits. 

When ‘Tether-peg 
saw the storm com- 
ing, she tethered the 
animals in a thicket 
not far from the 
camp. But the cold 
winds blew through 
the thicket and the 
creatures shivered 
with the cold. 

In a lull in the 
storm the women 
went out and brought 
the animals to the 
fire. They feared 
the tethered crea- 
tures would die un- 


~ less they could find 


shelter. 

Now  Tether-peg 
knew there were 
‘those in the camp 
who wished to kill 


How the People Protected the Tethered Creatures 111 


the tethered creatures. But the wise woman wished to save 
them until a time of greater need. 

Calling all the people together, the wise woman said: 
“The gods have spoken. They command us to care for the 
creatures tethered in our camp. No one shall harm these 
creatures on pain of death.” 

Now the people knew what this meant. No one dared 
disobey what Tether-peg said was the will of the gods. Yet 
many of them believed that cruel Winter would kill the 
tethered creatures. 

‘““Let’s make a warm shelter for the creatures,”’ said Tether- 
peg. ‘‘Bring branches of fir. Let us build a warm shelter 
here by the fire.” 

So the women brought branches from the fir trees and 
they made a warm shelter near the fire. They littered the 
ground with a nice bedding of rushes and dry grass. 

All went well for a day or two. Then Tether-peg found 
that the calf was sucking all the cow’s milk. 

Calling her sisters, she said to them, ‘‘ Bring more branches 
from the fir trees. Make a shelter for the calf on the other 
side of the fire.”’ 

The women did this, and, while they worked, some of them 
spoke about the calf. 

“It’s an ugly creature,” said Root-digger. 

“It’s a bull calf,’’ said Drag-a-load. ‘‘Why does Tether-peg 
want to keep it?” 

“Hush!”’ said Spin-a-thread. ‘‘Remember, it’s the will 
of the gods.” 

One very cold night Root-digger said, ‘“I’ll take the big 
jumper into my pit.” 


’ 


112 The Early Herdsmen 


“T will take her,’ said Drag-a-load. 

Many of the women were eager to take her. They wanted 
the goat’s milk for their children. But Tether-peg knew it 
was best for the clan to give every child a share. 

“Let the big jumper stay by the cow,” said Tether-peg. 
“Tt is the will of the gods. As long as these creatures give 
milk, each child shall have a share.”’ 


THINGS TO DO 


Watch a storm and tell what happens. Draw a picture of it. 
Dramatize thts story. 
Illustrate this line: 

‘The women brought branches from the fir trees.” 


XXIII 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 


If the storm lasted many days, how could the people get food? 
Could the men hunt when it was very cold and stormy? 
Do cows give much milk when they are very cold? 


When Famine Came to the Land 


As the days passed, Winter ruled with a hard hand. Ever 
thicker and thicker grew the ice on the river. Ever deeper 
and deeper fell the snow on hills and woodlands and grassy 
plains. Ever colder and colder blew the fierce winds from 
the land of the North. 

The winds were very fierce that winter. Sometimes they 
whistled through the trees, swaying every bough. Sometimes 


When Famine Came to the Land 113 


they came down the valley howling like a pack of wolves. 
And sometimes they roared and bellowed like raging bulls. 
They filled the hollows and gullies with snow. They piled 
the ravines with drifts. 

The animals had a hard time. At the beginning of the 
storm some escaped by going farther south. Those that 
remained suffered from hunger. Many perished from the 
cold. Those that took shelter in the ravines were buried 
in the snow. 

It was not easy for the women to keep the tethered crea- 
tures alive. Had it not been for the warm camp fire, they 
would have perished from the cold. Each day the women fed 
them, and each day the cow and the goat gave the women a 
little milk. 

During the first few days of the storm the cattle could 
be heard in the woodlands. At such times the people won- 
dered how the poor creatures fared. 

“Listen!’’ said Spin-a-thread. ‘‘The cattle are bawling.”’ 

The people listened to the plaintive bawling coming from 
the woodlands. 

“They are freezing,’ said Drag-a-load. 

“They are starving,” said Root-digger. 

“Winter is devouring everything in the land,’’ added 
Spin-a-thread. 

Again the plaintive bawling was heard, but this time the 
sound was fainter and fainter. 

“The cattle can’t stand this fierce wind,” said Many- 
dogs. “It’s worse than a pack of hungry wolves.” 

As the man spoke, he looked sad. All his life he had 
taken great pride in protecting the flocks and herds. Now 


114 The Early Herdsmen 


Winter had come to devour them. The man knew not what 
to do. 

When the very coldest days had passed, the men went 
out to the woodlands. But they found no tracks of big 
game, and the cutting winds stiffened their fingers and sent 
them home numb and cold. 

Every day the dogs hunted. Sometimes they brought in 

small game; but many 

times they returned with 

a lean and hungry look. 

Day after day the men 
went out, but they found 
no trace of the herds. 

They found a few deer 

and small game along the 

river bottoms, but when 
these were all killed or 
driven away, the people 
began to starve. 
Sometimes the children 
cried for food. Their 
mothers gave them all 
- they could, but that was 
Pnot very much. The 
hazelnuts were gone. The 
acorns were nearly gone. 

Only afew wild roots were 

left in the winter stores. 

- ues . Each day the cow and 
Making a shelter far the calf the goat gave less milk. 


Xe. 


“It's worse than a pack of hungry wolves” 


116 The Early Herdsmen 


Time and again hungry eyes were turned toward the 


The raven looked down from the tree and cawed 


tethered creatures. But 
no one dared touch them. 
Tether-peg saw these 
hungry looks. She, too, 
was troubled. Several 
times she asked herself, 
“Has the time come when 
we may kill the creatures 
tethered in our camp?” 
The third time the ques- 
tion came, she noticed a 
raven in an oak tree. 
‘“‘T’ll ask the raven,’’ she 


said. ‘‘The raven can 
tell me the will of the 
gods.”’ 


Wrapping herself in a 
warm skin garment, she 
went to the oak where the 
raven perched. ‘Tellme, 
wise bird,’’ said Tether- 
peg, ‘has the time come 
for us to kill and eat the 
creatures tethered in the 
camp?” 

The raven looked down 
from the tree and cawed. 
Tether-peg thought the 
raven said,‘‘No! No! No!” 


When Famine Came to the Land 117 


‘““My people are hungry,” said Tether-peg. ‘The children 
are crying for food. May we not kill one of these animals? 
If so, which shall it be?”’ 

The raven looked very wise and cawed. ‘This time 
Tether-peg thought it said, ‘Calf! Calf! Calf!” 

‘‘Answer once more,” said Tether-peg. ‘‘When may we 
kill the calf?” 

Again the raven cawed from the tree. Tether-peg, lsten- 
ing, heard it say, ‘‘Now! Now! Now!’’ 

At once she called the people together and told them the 
will of the gods. That very day the calf was killed, and 
although each person had only a small piece of meat, all 
were happier than they had been for a long time. 

A few days later the wise woman again talked with the 
raven. When she had finished, she told the people they 
might kill the kid. But as long as the cow and the goat 
gave milk, they were protected by the will of the gods. 

Three times each day the women milked the cow. Three 
times each day they milked the goat. Each child had his 
share of milk once every day. 

When the goat gave only a few drops of milk, Tether-peg 
said, ‘‘We may kill her.” 

The goat was killed, and once again the people had a taste 
of meat. 

A few days later the cow gave no milk. Then Tether-peg 
said, ‘‘We may kill the cow.” 

The cow was killed that very day, and the people again 
had meat. 

When the meat was all gone, the men did their best 
to bring home game from the woodlands. But the gods 


118 The Early Herdsmen 


of the woodlands seemed unfriendly. They gave them no 
game. 

At the last Many-dogs, in despair, prayed to the great 
god of the woodlands: ‘‘Hear our prayer, O god of the wood- 
lands! Send game to our hunting grounds! The herds are 
gone! Useless are our arrows! Help us or we die!” 


THINGS TO DO 
Listen to the winds on a stormy day and tell what sounds you hear. 
Model a raven in clay. Can you tell why it ts called a wise bird? 
Dramatize part of this story. 
Illustrate one of these lines: 
“They returned with a lean and hungry look.”’ 
‘ Tether-peg, listening, heard it say, ‘Now! Now! Now!’” 


XXIV 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 


If the people trusted in magic and it failed, how would they feel? 
Can you think what people sometimes eat during a famine? 
Why did the people complain of the gods when they had little food? 


Why the People Uttered Complaints 


Now for many years the people had believed they could 
change the seasons by magic. They believed they could 
hasten the coming of Summer and stay her going. Every 
year they used magical arts to keep Summer with them. 
Every year they used magical arts to bring her back again. 

Many times during this long cold winter they had used 
magical arts. They had built great fires to make the sun 
shine and hasten the coming of Summer. They had used 


Why the People Uttered Complaints 119 


charms and sung songs. They believed these charms and 
songs would help them to bring back the herds. They 
believed they could clothe the trees by their magic and cause 
the earth to put forth her fruits. 

But, in spite of all their magical arts, Winter still ruled 
the land. The earth remained bleak and cold. The trees 
were still bare. And nowhere was there a single sign of any 
of the herds. 

It is not strange that the people were sad. They were 
hungry and had little food. They were gloomy, and the 
bleak earth gave them no cheer. Much of the time they were 
ill-tempered. Sometimes they were as cross as bears. 

Tether-peg did all she could to arouse the people to 
courage and cheer. She urged them to go out in search of 
food. Day after day she went with her sisters in search 
of acorns and tender sapwood. 

“Let us go to the firs and the aspens,’”’ said Tether-peg. 
“Bring your chisels. Let us strip off the soft, tender sap- 
wood.”’ 

The women took their bone chisels and went with Tether- 
peg over the drifts. They went to the fir trees and the 
aspens and stripped off the soft, tender sapwood. They 
carried loads of it to the camp and made it into a coarse 
bread. 

When eating this bread, the people complained. 

‘“May Winter never have better food than he gives to us 
this day,’”’ said Root-digger. 

“He is stingy,’ said Big-crow. 

“He gives us nothing to grease our knives,’’ added Gray- 
wolf, who was hungry for a taste of fat. meat. 


120 


The Early Herdsmen 


“Hush!” said Tether-peg. ‘“‘That which hath wings may 
hear your words and bear them to the ear of Winter.” And 


A two-pointed stone chisel 


with these words she left the camp and 
went out over the snowdrifts. She feared 
to provoke the anger of Winter. She 
still hoped to find a way to appease the 
wrath of the gods. 

The starving people were too miserable 
to heed the wise woman’s warning. Bitter 
words came to their lips. They could not 
hold them back. 

“The aspens tried to cut me today 
when I stripped off their sapwood,” said 
Drag-a-load. 

“The fir trees are ugly, too,’ added 
spin-a-thread. ‘They frowned and swished 


their dark plumes whenever we came near.”’ 

“The gods of the woodlands are ill-tempered,”’ said Gray- 
wolf. ‘‘They send us no game.” 

“They are not looking after the herds,’’ added Many-dogs. 
“They neglect their work.” 

“South Wind used to look 


after the herds,” 


digger. ‘‘Where is she now? 
I have n’t seen her for many 


moons.”’ 


said Root- 


An earthen food tray 


“North Wind drove her away,’ rephed Spin-a-thread. 
“He drove her away when Winter came.”’ 

“Tt’s time she came back,’’ growled Big-crow. ‘‘It’s time 
she came back with the herds.”’ 


Why the People Uttered Complaints 121 


“Why don’t the daughters of the woodlands help us?”’ 
asked Spin-a-thread. ‘‘They used to take care of the herds. 
They used to be our friends.” 

“The daughters of the woodlands!”’ growled Many-dogs. 
“Last summer they were beautiful. They were kind. Now 
they are horrible creatures.” 

“They are lazy,’ added Big-crow. ‘They have given 
the herds to the wolves.”’ 

‘““Why are they so careless?”’ asked Spin-a-thread. ‘Why 
are the gods of the woodlands so cruel?”’ 

“Winter has cast a spell upon them,” replied Many-dogs. 
"They won’t do a thing to help us.” 

““That’s true,’ added Big-crow. ‘Every time I go into 
the woods some tree pricks me with her thorns.”’ 

“Prick!”’ shouted Gray-wolf. ‘“‘They pierce! They tear! 
They rend!” 


‘““Even the bushes are angry,” added Drag-a-load. ‘‘ They 
try to stop us on our way. They seize us whenever we try 
to pass.”’ 


“The gods of the woodlands are ill-tempered,” said Big- 
crow. ‘‘They are as cross as bears.”’ 

‘Winter is to blame for all this,’ cried Many-dogs. 

“Winter is cruel,’ moaned Spin-a-thread. ‘‘He has 
stripped the trees. He has frozen the ground. He has 
covered the earth with snow.” 

“This land was once a land of plenty,’’ wailed Drag-a-load. 
“Now it’s a land of want and woe.” 

“Tt is worse,’ moaned Root-digger. “It is a land of 
death.” 

“T wish Sky would help us,” said Spin-a-thread. 


= 


They cried out. They uttered pitiful complaints 


Why the People Uttered Complaints 123 


“T wish Sun would shine,” wailed Drag-a-load. 


“Sun is lame,’’ replied Many-dogs. ‘‘Sun is sick.’’ 

“Sun is a weary bird,” said Tether-peg, who now had 
returned from the woodlands. ‘‘But, even so, Sun is our 
friend.” 


The wise woman tried to comfort the people the best she 
knew how. But the more she tried to comfort them, the 
more they lamented. So at length she, too, became dis- 
couraged. She, too, began to lament. 

Then it was that it seemed to the people they could not 
bear their sufferings. They lifted their voices. They cried 
out. They uttered pitiful complaints. 

Little by little the loud wailing ceased. Then the sound 
the people sent forth was like the moaning of the wind. 
And after a little this sound was hushed. Their troubles 
were lost in sleep. 


THINGS TO DO 


What animals have teeth something like chisels? See if you can make 
a bone chisel. Make one of stone. 
What does the south wind seem like to you? The north wind? 
Dramatize this story. 
Illustrate this line: 
‘Their troubles were lost in sleep.” 


XXV 
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 


Have you ever heard of people telling their troubles to trees and 
rocks? People used to do it. Can you tell why? Can you tell why 
they thought the trees answered them? 


124 The Early Herdsmen 


Why did people once call trees ‘‘daughters of the woodlands’? Are 
there any such creatures as fairies?’ Can you think why people once 
thought there were? Are there such creatures as demons? Why did 
people think there were? 

Have you ever heard stories about a sleeping beauty or a sleeping 
princess? How was she awakened from her sleep? What do you think 
such a story means? 


7 ether-pee Tells Her Woes to the 
Zvees and Rocks 


Although Tether-peg lamented with the people, she did 
not lose all hope. Many times, 1n the years that had passed, 
the winter had been long and cold. But the summer had 
always come. Many times the people had suffered from 
famine, but a season of plenty had always followed. So 
Tether-peg hoped a way might be found to bring back gentle 
Summer. 

Now you know that the seasons come in order. We do 
not have to bring them. ‘The seasons come and the seasons 
go in their proper time. But in those days people believed 
they could hasten the coming of Summer. And since their 
magic had failed to bring her, Tether-peg went out to the 
woodlands to tell her woes to the gods. 

As the wise woman looked over the woodlands, her heart 
was filled with sorrow. ‘Trees that were beautiful in summer 
now seemed to her unsightly. The oaks were still clothed 
in their sere brown leaves; the pines and fir trees kept their 
green garments. But the elms were bare, the ash trees were 
bare, the aspens were bare, and the birch trees were ragged 
and tattered. 


Tether-peg Tells Her Woes to the Trees and Rocks 125 


“Winter has cast a spell upon them,” said Tether-peg 
under her breath. ‘‘No longer are the daughters of the 
woodlands beautiful. No longer are they kind.” 

Seeing big rocks close at hand, Tether-peg went up to 
them and poured forth her woes: ‘“O rocks, strong ones, 
mothers of many children! Listen to the woes of my people! 
Hearken to our pitiful tale!” 

Tether-peg paused as if to learn whether the rocks listened. 
Then she told the rocks the story of the long, cold winter. 
She told how Famine had come to the land and how the 
people were starving. As she talked, the woman felt that 
the rocks heard what she said. 

“None of the gods gives us aid,’’ she moaned. ‘Winter 
has cast a spell upon them. The goddess of all living things 
sleeps while the people starve. Her daughters are idle. 
They neglect their work. The earth is barren and cold.” 

When she had finished, Tether-peg rested beside the big 
rocks. She was weak from hunger. Many times she had 
given her food to the children. Now it seemed that help 
must come or all the people would starve. 

While she sat beside the rocks, it seemed that they gave 
her strength. So she arose and turned to the trees. For a 
moment she gazed at their untidy clothing. Then her 
thoughts went back to the beautiful garments they wore 
during the summer. 

The pines and fir trees still wore their green dresses, so 
at first she turned to them. ‘‘O daughters of the woodlands!”’ 
Tether-peg said. “‘Many times, in the days that have 
passed, you have comforted my people. Now they have 
need of your aid. Come and comfort them.”’ 


126 The Early Herdsmen 


‘Too long have you withheld your fruits from a barren land” 


When she paused, the pine trees hummed and soothed 
the sorrowful woman. And the fir trees swished their stiff 
branches as if they would like to help. 

Tether-peg then turned to the trees that were bare. They 
seemed to frown upon her. But the wise woman asked 
them questions; she pleaded with them, hoping to break 
Winter’s spell. 


Tether-peg Tells Her Woes to the Trees and Rocks 127 


‘Why do you idle away your time?”’ asked the wise woman. 
‘““Why do you lounge about in the forest when you should be 
putting on new garments? Why do you cut and rend my 
sisters when they seek a morsel of food?”’ 

The aspens would not listen to her. So Tether-peg turned 
to the elm and ash and other trees that were bare. She 
chided them for their careless ways and then she turned to 
the oaks. 

Standing beneath a lofty oak, Tether-peg thus spoke: 
“Mighty oak! Greatest of all the trees in the forest! What 
ails you? Why do you cling to those tattered garments? 
Why do you not put on a new dress? Too long have you 
been under the spell of a cruel master. Too long have you 
withheld your fruits from a barren land.” 

The dry leaves rustled as she spoke. Thinking this was a 


good sign, the wise woman continued: “‘Wake up! Wake 


up! Wake up from your slumbers! Remember who you 
are! Have you forgotten that you are the favorite of the 


| great god Sky? He is our friend. Surely you will help us! 


Wake up! Put on a new garment! Give us of your fruit!” 
Again the dry leaves rustled. And this time a few sere 


leaves fluttered to the ground. Seeing them drop, the wise 


woman said, ‘The oak 1s waking from her long sleep.” 
Tether-peg now looked about for the great god and goddess 
of the woodlands. She beheved they were the master and 
mistress of all living things. 
For a long time she searched for them. She searched 
through the dense woodlands and looked out on the place 


that had been the feeding ground of the herds. She looked 
up and down the valley and away to the distant hills. But 


128 The Early Herdsmen 


nowhere could she find 
‘a trace of the god and 
goddess of the woodlands. 
“Winter has put them 
~to sleep,” said Tether- 
peg. ‘He knows they 
are our friends. Surely 
there is some one who 
can rouse them! I’ll ask 
the daughters of the wood- 
lands to do it.” 

So Tether-peg again 
turned to the trees. 
First she went to the 
rowan tree, for she knew 
it would be glad to help. 
But Winter, too, knew 
this. The story goes that 
he held the rowan tree 
captive by lying at its 
roots. Tether-peg must 
have heard this story, for 
she left the rowan tree, 


believing that Winter held 


“Play, daughters of the woodlands!” it a captive. 
cried Tether- peg 


Turning now to other 
trees, she asked them to help her. She tried to charm the 
trees with songs: ‘‘O daughters of the woodlands, gracious 
friends!” sang the wise woman. ‘Too long has your mother 
been sleeping! Too long have you been kept under 


Tether-peg Tells Her Woes to the Trees and Rocks 129 


Winter’s spell! Too long have you appeared in unsightly 
garments!”’ 

Pausing a moment, she looked about. Then again she 
sang to the trees: ‘‘Sweet singers of the woodlands! Let 
me hear your beautiful songs! Let the woods ring with 
your glad music! Sing and waken the master and mistress 
from their long sleep!”’ 

Again Tether-peg paused. The pine trees hummed over 
her head. The oaks rustled their dry leaves. And amoment 
later a flute-lke tone was heard among the branches. 

“Play, daughters of the woodlands!”’ cried Tether-peg 
when she heard the sweet sound. ‘‘Let your sweet tones 
waken the mother of all living things.” 

Again the flute-like tone was heard. ‘The spell has been 
broken,”’ said the wise woman. ‘The gracious goddess will 


awake.”’ 
THINGS TO DO 


Why did Tether-peg think Winter had cast a spell on the trees and plants? 
Dramatize this story, showing how the trees answered Tether-peg when 
she spoke to them. 


XXVI 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 


Where do bears stay in the winter? When they come out of their 
dens, are they lean or fat? 

People used to think that if they killed a bear he would tell other 
bears and they would come and make war upon them. Since they believed 
this, how do you think they would try to keep the bear from telling he 
had been killed? 

When dogs are first harnessed to a load, do you think they pull 
together, or first one and then another? Which is the better way? 


130 The Early Herdsmen 
Why the People Rejzowced 


When Tether-peg returned, the people were sleeping. 
None of them knew when she came back. None of them 
awoke until the next morning, when they kindled their fires. 
Then the wise woman told the people what had happened in 
the woodlands. 

“Did you see the daughters of the woodlands?”’ asked 
Spin-a-thread. 

“Yes,’’ replied Tether-peg. 

“Did you hear them?”’ asked Drag-a-load. 

“T heard them hum and sing,” said Tether-peg. ‘‘And 
I heard them playing their magic flutes.”’ 

Op ‘Did you see the 
i goddess of the 
woodlands?”’ asked 

(\ , Many-dogs. | 
. she as. s4i11 
sleeping, replied 
| Tether-pes. "But 
PEC 1 (ad are ce tec 
guile, are calling her. 
Bay They are waking 

ae ei her from her lon 
' g 
sleep with their 

hanced, " magic flutes.”’ 

: ; “Gat ne aa 
them,’’ said Day’s-eye. “‘They are up there.’’ And the 
child pointed up toward the sky. 

The people listened. 


i 
\| 


b] 


Why the People Rejoiced 131 


“It’s a swan!”’ cried Tether-peg. ‘It’s a hooper swan. 
Its cry is the sign of a thaw.” 

“Hoop! hoop! hoop!”’ cried the people. ‘‘The swan says 
there will be a thaw.’”’ And for some time men, women, 
and- children ‘cried. out for joy. 

“Let’s go to the woodlands,” said Many-dogs. ‘The 
bears may be coming out of their dens.”’ 

“Come, Cubby! Come, Bushy-tail! Come, Barker! 
Come, Biter!’’ cried Big-crow. 

The dogs came at his call. A few moments later men 
and dogs were on their way to the woodlands. 

While Many-dogs and Bushy-tail were hunting together, 
the dog pricked up her ears. 

“What is it, Bushy?”’ asked Many-dogs. 

Bushy-tail growled. Her hair stood on end. 

A big bear was waking from his long sleep in a big hol- 
low tree. He was crawling out. Many-dogs saw him and 
whistled for the dogs. 

“Be quiet, Bushy-tail,’’ he said. ‘‘Wait until the pack 
comes.” 

At the call the dogs came bounding over the snowdrifts 
straight to the master they loved. 

They scented the bear. 

Quick as a flash the whole pack pounced upon him. 

“Seize him! Hold him!” cried Many-dogs. ‘‘Hold him 
fast)” | 

The dogs obeyed the word of their master. They held 
the bear fast. 

A hard blow from Many-dogs’ axe now put an end to 
the struggle. 


132 The Early Herdsmen 


“Well done! Well done, my good dogs!” said the man as 
he patted first one and then another of the dogs on the head. 
Each dog had a word of praise from the brave man. 

The tussle with the bear was over before the other men 
arrived. 

“T’ll fetch the dog harness,’”’ said Big-crow when he 
had seen the bear. 

Big-crow was not gone long. When he returned, Howler 
and Growler and Barker and Biter were hitched to the 
carcass of the bear. 

‘‘Pyll, Howler! Pull, Growler! Pull, Barker! Pull, Biter!” 
cried Many-dogs. 

First Howler pulled, then Growler pulled, and then Barker 
and Biter followed in turn. The carcass of the bear did not 
move, for one dog could not start it. 


“Pull, my good dogs! Pull together!” 


Why the People Rejoiced 133 


“Now pull!’’ cried Many-dogs. ‘‘Pull, my good dogs! 
Pull together!” 

This time the four dogs pulled together. The carcass 
moved slowly out of the drifts and down to the well-trodden 
trail. 

There was joy in the camp when the bear was brought in. 
The bear was lean, to be sure. But hungry people prefer 
lean meat to no meat at all. They leaped and danced 
around the bear. They uttered cries of joy. 

When the men started to skin the bear, Big-crow asked, 
“Will the bear tell his brothers?” 

“T fear he will,’’ replied Gray-wolf. 

“Tf he does, all the bears will be angry,” said 
Drag-a-load. ‘‘They will le in wait; they will pounce upon 
us.” 

“Set him on his haunches,”’ said Tether-peg. ‘Treat 
him as an honored guest.” 

So they set the bear on his haunches. They pretended to 
give him food. They spoke to the bear as toa friend. They 
treated him as a guest. 

‘‘Now he is pleased,’ said Tether-peg. ‘‘ Now he will tell 
the bears we are friends.”’ 

When the men were skinning the bear, Little-bear asked 
if he could have the heart. 

“The heart 1s yours,’’ said the wise woman. 

Many-dogs nodded his head. He remembered his promise 
many moons before to the boy who wished to be brave. 

The heart of the bear was given to Little-bear. Many- 
dogs kept the skin. Each person had a share of the meat, 
and each dog had a bone. 


134 The Early Herdsmen 


THINGS TO DO 
Make a list of all the signs you know that tell of the coming of summer. 
Do you know more than one kind of swan? Does the kind you know 
have a cry? If so, what is 1t? 
Notice a dog when he is hunting. Tell how he acts. Draw a picture 
of him. 
Model in bas-relief the dogs drawing the carcass of a bear. 
Dramatize part of this story. 
Illustrate one of these lines: 
“A big bear was waking from his long sleep.” 
“The dogs came bounding over the snowdrifts.” 
‘They set the bear on his haunches.” 


XXVITI 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 


Does spring usually come at once, or does it come slowly? 
What is a magpie? Can vou think why people once thought it was 
a witch? 


What the People Did on a Dark Night 


The next day a thaw set in. The snow became soft and 
wet, and the ice on the river melted. Then suddenly it 
became cold. The snow and ice no longer melted. Day 
after day the sky was dark. They had no meat. There was 
little, if any, game in sight, so again the people were 
troubled. 

Something else was troubling Tether-peg during these 
days. A magpie had come to the camp. Day after day 
it stayed in the trees, flitting about among the branches and 
chattering noisily. 


What the People Did on a Dark Night 135 


Nobody liked to have the bird near. Everybody thought 
it was a bad sign. Some thought it was not a magpie, 
but a witch in a magpie’s form. 

“Tt is not a bird,” said Many-dogs when he heard it 
chattering in the trees, mimicking everything it heard. ‘‘It 
foray Watch | 

‘You are right,’ said 
Bie-croOw.. kts. a4 2 
witch that has come: | 
tO-spy UpOneus. 

“The dark one has 
sent it,’ said Tether- 
peg, and by that she — 
meant the dark mon- 
ster, Winter. 

“Tt has no business 
ime Our camp, ~ said 
Many-dogs. 

“Don’t kilbit,” said 
Tether-peg. “‘It might 
get us into trouble.” 

‘You are right,’’ said Many-dogs. ‘But I wish the foul 
creature and its master would leave the land at once.”’ 

Many-dogs spoke bitterly. But he spoke as the people 
felt. They had thought that Winter was going. But he 
was still in the land. They had hoped the herds would come 
back. But Famine was still with them. 

One day the magpie was very noisy. It chattered, it jab- 
bered, it scolded, all the day long. It flitted about from 
tree to tree. It played tricks. It was never quiet. 


A magpie had come to the camp 


136 The Early Herdsmen 


That night Tether-peg did not sleep. She felt that trouble 
was near. While she was thinking, an owl came and screeched 
from a tree near her pit. Three times the owl screeched and 
each time she thought it said that trouble was close at hand. 

The brave woman 
crept out of the pit. She 
peered into the night. 
Darkness covered the 
face of the earth. The 
sky was inky black. 

Tether-peg drew back 
for the darkness seemed 
to press upon her. 

Again the owl 
screeched. 

“Bird of Night!’ cried 
the brave woman, 
“Come not to our dwell- 
ings. Bring not hither 
the demons of darkness. 
Away! away! away!” 

All was silent. The 
darkness seemed to grow 
blacker. The wise wo- 
}man feared it would 
swallow the earth. 

A sound like the 


chattering of many 
Ses -magpies suddenly arose 
“Bird of Night! Come not to our dwellings!” from the dark night. 


What the People Did on a Dark Night 137 


Tether-peg shuddered. She called the people. She roused 
them from their sleep. 

“Up! up! The witches are here,” cried Tether-peg. 
“Demons of darkness fill the air. Build fires! Drive them 
away!” 

The startled people crept out of the pits very cautiously. 
They piled fresh branches on the fire. They lighted torches. 
They waved them to and fro until the camp was as lght 
as day. 

“Darkness is a hungry beast,”’ said Many-dogs as he looked 
out into the black night. ‘‘I fear he has come to swallow 
the earth.” 

“Keep the fires burning,’ said Tether-peg. ‘Light 
torches. Bring Sun back to light up the day.” 

The people then marched with lighted torches around a 
sacred oak. They marched as the sun moves in its daily 
path, for they thought this would help the sun. 

When this was done, Tether-peg told the people of the 
chattering of the magpies. 

“They are demons,” said Big-crow. 

“They are witches!’’ cried Drag-a-load. 

“Let’s scare them,’’ said Many-dogs. ‘“‘Let’s blow 
horns.” 

So the people got out their biggest horns and they blew 
blast after blast. The hills echoed the wild music; the air 
was filled with weird sounds. 

“T wonder how they lke that,’’ said Big-crow as he blew 
a loud blast on his big horn. 

“They can’t stand that,’”’ said Many-dogs. ‘They will 
be glad to fly away.” 


138 The Early Herdsmen 


A faint glimmer of light was now seen in the eastern sky. 
The people rejoiced when they caught the first gleam. For 
a moment they faced the dawning day. Then they bowed 
their heads while Tether-peg prayed to the rising sun. 

THINGS TO DO 

Can you tell why the owl ts called the bird of night? Learn what you can 
about owls. Model an owl tn clav. 

Illustrate one of these lines: 

“Tt flitted about from tree to tree.”’ 

““Bird of Night!’ cried the brave woman. ‘Come not to our dwell- 
ings.” 

“They marched as the sun moves tn tts datly path.” 


xX XV Tl 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 
When animals are lost in the snow, in what kind of a place are they 
most likely to be? 
How do you think the nuthatch got its name? 


What the Men Found in a Ravine 


When the people lifted their heads, they heard the cheer- 
ful song of a little blue tit. During the day other birds 
were heard. Little nuthatches began to whistle. Several 
wrens came out of their holes and began to whistle and sing. 

“Perhaps the herds have come,’ said Many-dogs when 
he heard birds that had long been silent whistle and chirp 
and sing. ‘‘Let’s go to the woodlands and look for game.” 

The men first went to a high bank from which they could 
look up and down the valley. While there, Big-crow saw a 
dark spot near the head of a ravine. 


What the Men Found in a Ravine 139 


‘Look!’ he cried. ‘‘Look at that spot at the head of the 
ravine! What is it?”’ 

“It’s an animal,”’ said Gray-wolf. 

“Tt’s a cow!” cried Many-dogs, who knew at once that 
the creature had been buried in the snow. ‘Let’s go and 
dig her out.” 

The men hastened down the bank; they soon reached 
the ravine. Many-dogs was right. There in the snow was 
the frozen body of a cow. 

While digging the snow away from the carcass, Many- 
dogs found another dead cow. A moment later, Big-crow 
found another. Soon the 
men dug from the snow -« 
the carcasses of several _ 
cows and calves. 

For a moment the men 
were speechless. All their 
lives they had been careful 
not to harm mother cows 
and their calves. And 
here at their feet were the 
bodies of many cows and 
calves. 

‘This is Winter’s work,” 
said Many-dogs, and as he 
spoke he clenched his fist. 

‘He sent North Wind to 
heap up the snow and hide 
them away from us,’’ added 


Gray-wolf. Little nuthatches began to whistle 


140 The Early Herdsmen 


“Sun has shown up their work,” said Big-crow. 

“Tf it thaws much more, the water will carry the bodies 
down the river,” said Gray-wolf. 

‘‘Let’s haul them out,” said Many-dogs. ‘‘Let’s tie 
thongs about them and hitch the dogs to the load.”’ 

So the men tied thongs about one carcass and hitched 
the dogs to the load. When this was hauled out, they 
hauled out another and then another and another. 

Every dog in the pack was put into harness. All helped 
in dragging the carcasses of the cows to the camp. 

Women and children saw the long line coming down the trail. 
And, although they were sorry the cattle had been killed, 
they were all glad to have meat enough to last many days. 

“Are all the cattle buried in the ravine?”’ Drag-a-load 
asked when she was roasting a piece of frozen meat. 


Every dog in the pack was put into harness 


Why the People Welcomed the First Swallow 141 


“T hope not,’’ replied Many-dogs. ‘‘ But, to make sure, 
we will search through all the ravines.”’ 

“Sun will help us,’’ said Big-crow. ‘If Winter has played 
any more mean tricks, Sun will show up his work.” 


THINGS TO DO 
Notice whether the birds that stay all the year chirp and sing as much 
an winter as they doin summer. See tf you can chirp and sing as the birds do. 
If you have a chance to see a ravine, look at it carefully. Tell how you 
think it was made. Model a ravine in the sand box. 
Dramatize part of this story. 
Illustrate one of these lines: 
“Every dog tn the pack was put into harness.” 
““Women and children saw the long line coming down the trail.” 


XXIX 
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 
When the sun reached a higher point in the sky at midday, how do 
you think the people would explain it?) How do you explain it? 
Where does the swallow spend the winter? Where does it like to 
build its nest? 


Why the People \Velcomed the First Swallow 


Once again a thaw set in. The snow became soft and 
wet and the ice on the river melted. Hollows became ponds 
of water, ravines and gullies became roaring streams, and the 
river overflowed its banks and flooded the bottom lands. 

When the women stood watching the running water, they 
noticed brown spots of earth peeping out from the bed of 
snow. 


142 The Early Herdsmen 


“Sun is at last taking away Winter’s blanket,” said 
Spin-a-thread. ‘‘He is taking Winter’s blanket from the 
great Mother’s bed.”’ 

‘“Sun is kind,’’ said Root-digger. ‘‘He knows it is time 
for the goddess to awake.” 

“Will the Mother of the woodlands awake now?”’ asked 
Day’s-eye. 

“She will,’ replied Tether-peg. ‘‘She has heard her 
daughters calling. She is stirring in her great bed.” 

The women listened. _To their keen ears 1t seemed new 
life was astir in the earth. 

‘“Hasten, kind Mother, hasten!’’ cried Spin-a-thread. 
“Come and bring forth the fruits of the earth.’ 

“She will come,’ said Tether-peg. ‘‘ The eagle has carried 
a message to Sky. Have you not noticed that Sun is gain- 
ing strength?” 

‘““T have,” replied Spin-a-thread. ‘‘He climbs higher than 


he did,” 
While the women talked, the children were watching a 


nuthatch as it ran up and down a tree. While they were 
watching, the nuthatch whistled and a green woodpecker 
burst into a loud laugh. 

‘ Pick-a-tree likes this bright day,”’ said Drag-a-load, when 
she heard the green woodpecker. 

“So he does,” said Tether-peg. ‘‘He likes to rouse the 
woodlands. He likes to bring good news.”’ 

“The swallow brings us good news,” added Spin-a-thread. 
“We will dance and sing when she comes.” 

“That is right,’ said Tether-peg. ‘‘Let us greet the first 
swallow with song and dance.” 


Why the People Welcomed the First Swallow 143 


That very day Tether-peg heard the sweet song of a 
swallow. ‘“‘Sheishere! She is here!”’ cried the wise woman. 
“The swallow! The swallow is here!” 

“There she is!’’ cried Spin-a-thread, pointing to a bird 
skimming through the air above a high bank of the river. 

The people ran out to the high bank. They leaped, they 
danced for joy. All sang heartily to welcome the forerunner 
of summer. 

“Summer is coming! Summer is coming!’’ cried Many- 
dogs when the people paused to rest. 

At this, again the 
people danced to 
welcome the first 
swallow. 

That evening as 
they sat around the 
fire, Pick-a-tree 
asked, ‘‘ Where has 
the swallow been?” 

“She has been 
hiding from Win- 
ter,’ repled Tether- 
peg. “‘She has been 
hiding in the clefts 
of the rocks.” 

For a long time 
the people talked 
about the swallow. 
Then they guessed i Ba 
riddles. The They leaped, they danc 


ae 


ed for joy : 


144 The Early Herdsmen 


children, too, tried 
to make riddles, and 
all tried to guess 


them. 

“T’m thinking of 
something,’’ said 
Day’s-eye. 


“OW et. ee 
asked Little-bear. 

“You must guess 
it,’ replied Day’s- 
eye. “I’m thinking 
of something that 
hasatwittering 
song.” 

“T know what it 
is,”" ‘6ard: .Pick-q- 
tree, "1h has oa 
breast of snow.’ 

“The swallow ts here!” For Pick-a-tree 
guessed from the first that Day’s-eye was making a riddle 
about the swallow. 

Again Day’s-eye began, and this time she nearly finished 
the riddle: 


‘Twittering song, 
Breast of snow, 
Jetty back—”’ 


‘“As black as a crow,’’ added Little-bear. ‘‘ The swallow’s 
back is as black as a crow.” 


Why the People Welcomed the First Swallow 145 


‘“Now let me say it all,’’ said Day’s-eye. And the child 
repeated the riddle they had made: 


“Twittering song, 
Breast of snow, 
Jetty back 

As black as a crow.” 


“The swallow! The swallow!” cried the children. 

Then they turned to their fathers and mothers and asked 
them to guess it. Day’s-eye repeated the riddle, and the 
people clapped their hands. 

‘The swallow!’’ they cried. 

Then all joined in a song to the swallow. 


THINGS TO DO 
When the snow melts see if you can find ponds, streams, waterfalls, 
and rapids in places which are usually dry ground. 
Name the birds you have heard whistle. Name those you have heard 
chirp. Name those you have heard sing. 
Make a song about some bird you know. 
Dramatize this story. 
Illustrate one of these lines: 
*“ ‘She ts here! She ts here!’ ’ 
“The people danced to welcome the first swallow.” 


XXX 
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 
Why were the people so anxious to have summer come?’ If they 


thought they could do anything to make the green things grow, do you 
think they ought to do it? If they had done their best and failed, how 


would they feel’ 


146 The Early Herdsmen 


Why the People Feared the arth Would 
IV athhold Fler Fruits 


The swallow came and it flew away. The very next day 
a stork was seen. The big white bird came flapping its wings 
and alighted in a tree near the pits. But the friendly stork, 
too, flew away and left sad faces behind. 

That very day a hard storm set in. The air was filled 
with snow and sleet. The winds howled. They tossed the 
snow. They pelted the people with hail. 

“Winter is angry,’’ said Many-dogs when he came in from 
the driving storm. ‘He is pelting us with snow and sleet 
and hail.” 

“He is fierce,’ said 
Big-crow. ‘‘He = snarls 
and growls.” 

&\ “T think he saw Sum- 
\ mer’s forerunners,” said 
‘La Many-dogs. “I think 

? _.» he has called the North 
J & “ _& Wind and the snow to 

\ ; drive them away.” 
ri “You are right,’ said 
- Tether-peg. ‘“‘Winter 
saw the swallow and 
the stork. He heard the 
cry of the swan. He is 
afraid they will bring 


27: 
The big white bird came flapping ifs wings Summer. 


People Feared the Earth Would Withhold Her Fruits 147 


‘“Winter’s friends are helping him today,” said Big-crow. 

“Tf they keep up such a fight as this, Summer won't be 
able to get here,’’ added Gray-wolf. 

‘“We must help her,’ said Tether-peg. ‘‘We must drive 
the dark monster and his friends from the land.” 

So every few days the people built fires to help Sun and 
Sky. They lighted torches and waved them in the air to 
drive Darkness away. They blew horns. They made a 
big clatter. They thought this would frighten Winter and 
free the earth from his spell. 

But, in spite of all the clatter and noise, the days were 
rough and stormy. In spite of all the big fires, the sky was 
overcast with dark clouds. Many of the people began to 
complain. They said that Summer would never come. For, 
in spite of all their magical arts, Winter still ruled the land. 

Tether-peg heard the complaints of the people, but she 
did not lose hope. What if a storm raged through the 
land? She had heard the cry of a swan. What if the earth 
was bleak and bare? She had heard the song of a swallow. 
And what if the herds had not come back? A stork had 
come to the camp. 

So the wise woman kept up hope and tried to encourage 
the people. But many of them still complained. Their 
hearts were filled with dread. 

“Why does the kind goddess sleep so long?”’ asked Day’s- 


ST 


eye one day when the people were sad. ‘Why does n’t she 
wake up and help us?”’ 
“T fear she will never awake,” said Spin-a-thread. ‘‘ Many 


moons have the god and goddess been sleeping. Many 
moons has the earth withheld her fruits.”’ 


z 


They blew horns. They made a big clatter 


They lighted torches. 


People Feared the Earth Would Withhold Her Fruits 149 


“T fear the trees will never again put forth their fruits,”’ 
said Drag-a-load. 

“TI fear we shall never see carrots and turnips again,”’ 
said Root-digger. 

“T fear the earth will never again be clothed with green 
grass,’ said Gray-wolf. 

“The herds must have grass,” said Big-crow. “If the 
great Mother withholds the grass, the cattle will die.’’ 

“Tf she does not send forth the green shoots and roots, 
we shall starve,’ added Root-digger. 

“Our magic has failed,” said Drag-a-load. ‘All the signs 
have failed.” 

‘““And we shall never see the green plants again,’’ moaned 
Spin-a-thread. 

Many-dogs had lstened to all the complaints. His heart 
was filled with dread. When Spin-a-thread finished, he said 
to the people, “‘If the plants perish, we perish.” 


THINGS TO DO 
Tell why people think the stork ts a friend. 
Dramatize thts story. 
Illustrate one of these lines: 
“The winds howled. They tossed the snow.”’ 
“The big white bird came flapping its wings and alighted in a tree 
near the pits.” 


XXXI 
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 


Can you think why we call the first day of April, April Fool’s Day? 
Who or what was fooled at that time? 


150 The Early Herdsmen 


When the earth begins to put forth green buds and leaves, what do 
you think the people will say about the god and goddess of the woodlands? 
Have you ever noticed March winds? If so, what are they like? 


How Cruel Winter Was Fooled 


Though the days were cold, the sun mounted higher and 
higher each day. Though the winds were rough, each day 
the sun seemed to give more heat. Though the earth was 


Pussies peeped out from the 
stems of the willows 


bare, there were signs of new life. 
The alders and hazels hung out 
their tassels, and pussies peeped 
out from the stems of the willows. 

Tether-peg was first to see 
these signs. At the sight, she 
cried out to the people, “*‘The 
goddess of the woodlands is awake. 
She is hanging tassels on the alders 
and hazels.”’ 

The people hastened to the 
woodlands and welcomed the god- 
dess with songs. They thanked her 
for hanging tassels on the bushes. 
They thanked her for the pussies 
that peeped out from the willows. 
They asked her to clothe the naked 
trees and cover the earth with 
grass. And they called to the 
god of the woodlands and asked 
him to bring back the herds. 


How Cruel Winter Was Fooled 151 


“How did it happen?”’ asked Spin-a-thread as she touched 
the soft pussies on the willows. 

“The eagle took a message to Sun,” answered Tether-peg. 
“When Sun heard what Winter was doing, he sent down 
warm rays and awoke the gods that have charge of all living 
things.” 

“Are the god and goddess of the woodlands awake?” 
asked Big-crow. 

“Both the god and the goddess are awake,’ she replied. 
“They are calling to the birds and the trees. They are 
calling to the earth to put forth her fruits. They are calling 
their helpers, the winds.”’ 

“The winds!” cried Gray-wolf. ‘‘The winds are working 
for Winter.” 

“So it seems,’ replied Tether-peg. ‘‘And Winter thinks 
they are helping him, but this time he is mistaken.”’ 

“Are you sure?’’ asked Many-dogs. ‘‘The winds are 
rough and cold. ‘They rush over the woodlands and plains; 
they push and pull the daughters of the woodlands; they 
tear off their garments.”’ 

“They toss and fling the dry leaves,”’ said Drag-a-load. 

“They tumble and toss and fling and hurl everything in 
their way,’ added Spin-a-thread. 

“They wrench and rend the trees,’ added Gray-wolf. 
“They break down the branches.” 

“They wrestle with them. They topple them down,”’ 
added Big-crow. 

“They uproot trees,’’ added Many-dogs. 

“They do all these things,” answered Tether-peg. ‘That 
is why Winter thinks they are working for him.”’ 


’ 


y 


’ 


152 The Early Herdsmen 


“Do you mean what you say?” asked Many-dogs. ‘Do 
you mean the winds are now at the beck and call of the god 
and goddess of the woodlands?” 

‘‘Even so,”’ replied Tether-peg. ‘‘As soon as they awoke, 
they called the winds, and the winds came rushing out of 
their caverns whistling and blowing their horns.”’ 

“Why are they so rough?’’ asked Spin-a-thread. ‘‘Why 
do they topple down everything in their path?” 

‘They are shaking the earth,’’ replied Tether-peg. ‘They 
are rousing her creatures from their long sleep. They are 
calling to the trees; they are calling to the grass; they are 
calling to the four-footed creatures.” 

“Tt is true,’ cried Spin-a-thread. ‘“‘See, the buds on the 
trees are beginning to swell.”’ 

‘“And listen,’ cried Drag-a-load. ‘‘The birds that have 
been silent all winter are beginning to sing.”’ 

“Even so,” said Tether-peg. ‘‘The winds have roused 
them from Winter’s spell.” 


How Cruel Winter Was Fooled 153 


‘Will Summer’s birds come again?”’ asked Day’s-eye when 
she heard the chirping of the wrens and the cheerful song of 
the nuthatch. 

“The gracious goddess has called the birds,” replied 
Tether-peg. ‘‘They are coming one by one.” 

“The swan came,” said Drag-a-load, ‘‘and so did the 
swallow and the stork. But they flew away.” 

“They will come again,” replied Tether-peg. ‘All the 
birds will come very soon. The goddess of the woodlands 
is calling them with her sweet song.”’ 

The people listened. Many sounds came from the wood- 
lands. When they heard a soft sweet note, they said, ‘‘The 
goddess is playing her flute.” And when they heard a loud 
sound like a horn, they said, ‘‘The god of the woodlands is 
calling.”’ 

On bright days 
the air was filled 
with the music 
of the winds 
and birds. The 
winds piped and 
whistled, they 
pounded, they 
howled, they 
shrieked and 
eroaned as they 
passed through 
the woods and 
over the pasture ae 
land. Flocks of wild geese 


agree 


154 The Early Herdsmen 


Great flocks of wild geese and white cranes blew their 
trumpets as they passed on their way to the north. And 
the little birds that had stayed all winter set up a big racket. 
The wrens and the sparrows chirped, the nuthatches whistled, 
the blue tits sang a cheerful song, and the green woodpeckers 
laughed. Hearing these sounds, the children wondered what 


it all meant. 


“What are the birds doing?’’ asked Little-bear when he 
heard the great din and clatter they made. 
“They are driving Winter’s tribe away,’ replied Tether- 


A white crane 


peg. ‘‘They are bringing 
in Summer and her friends.” 

Seeing the winds wrest- 
ling with the trees, Pick- 
a-tree asked, ““What are 
the winds doing?”’ 

“They are stripping the 
leaves from the oaks,” said 
Tether-peg. ‘‘*Theyarework- 
ing for the great Mother 
that clothes the trees.” 

When Day’s-eye noticed 
the winds toss and fling the 
dry leaves, she asked, ‘‘What 
are the winds doing now?”’ 

‘They are making a clean 
path for Summer,’ answered 
Tether-peg. “They are 
clearing old Winter’s grime 
away.” 


How Cruel Winter Was Fooled 155 


All that long moon the winds blew over woodlands and 
plains. Sometimes it seemed they were helping Winter, then 
again they seemed to be Summer’s friends. But all of the 
time they made a big racket, whistling and shrieking and 
howling and groaning, laughing and shouting, filling the 
earth with their loud cries. 

No wonder it seemed many times they were working for 
Winter. Sometimes even Tether-peg feared this was true, 
for the birds that arrived from the summer land quickly 
flew away; others appeared and flew away. But at last a 
a day came when great flocks arrived and stayed in the land. 

Seeing this, the people were sure that the noisy winds 
were their friends. They were sure that Summer was at 
their door. They were sure that Winter was fooled. And, 
although they did not say ‘“‘April Fool,” this was the beginning 
of what we call April Fool’s Day. It marked the time when 
Summer’s friends fooled Winter and his dark tribe. 


THINGS TO DO 


What bushes and trees do you know that have tassels in early spring? 
Listen to the winds and see tf you can imttate the sounds they make. 
Make the trumpet call of the wild geese; of the white cranes. Listen to 
the birds and find one that whistles; find one that makes a tone like a flute; 
like a lute. 
See if you can make music ltke that the people heard coming from the 
birds 1n the woodlands. 
Illustrate one of these lines: 
“Pussies peeped out from the stems of the willows.” 
‘“‘ Birds came in great flocks.” 
“<They toss and fling the dry leaves.’ ”’ 
“<They uproot trees.” 


156 The Early Herdsmen 
AXA 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 


How did people first get the idea that the god of the woodlands played 


pipes and called the flocks and herds? 
Do you know a sign for a good summer?’ [or a wet summer? 


The Return of the Herds 


Winter was fooled. Everybody knew it. Yet Summer 
was slow in offering her gifts. And since the herds had not 
yet returned, the people wondered if old Winter had driven 
them far away. 

Every day the people looked for the coming of the herds. 
Every day they asked the god of the woodlands to bring 
many herds to the hunting grounds. 
ra Sometimes they thought they 
“3 heard him calling, for they heard 
music like the playing of pipes along 
* the river trail. Sometimes the same 
“music came from paths that led to 
the pasture lands. 

“What is it?” asked Little-bear 
when the people stood and listened. 

“The god of the woodlands is 
playing his pipes,’’ answered Many- 
dogs. ‘He is calling the cattle. He is bringing them back 
to the summer feeding grounds.” 

“Can they hear him?”’ asked Little-bear. 

“The cattle can hear him,” replied Many-dogs. ‘‘The 
god of the woodlands has charge of the herds.”’ 


A cooking pot 


The Return of the Herds 157 


Every day the men climbed the high hills to look for the 
return of the herds. Every day they hunted small game. 
And every day the women stripped sapwood from the firs 
and aspens. 

‘“Summer comes slowly,’ said Drag-a-load as she stirred 
the sapwood in her cooking pot. ‘‘I wish she would hasten.” 

“‘T wish she would hasten,” said Root-digger. ‘I wish 
she would give us her fruits.” 

“IT wonder what good things she has in store for us,”’ said 
Spin-a-thread. 

“Ask the goddess of the woodlands,” said Root-digger. 
“She can tell you.” 

‘She does not tell me her secrets,’’ said Spin-a-thread. 
“T’m not like Tether-peg.”’ 

“Does the goddess of the woodlands tell Mother her 
secrets?’’ asked Day’s-eye. 

“Ves,” replied Spin-a-thread. ‘‘Your mother is wise. 
She can talk with the goddess of the woodlands.” 

“T ate the flesh of the eagle,’’ said Day’s-eye. ‘‘Some 
day I shall be wise.”’ 

The children now saw Tether-peg coming and ran out to 
meet her. They asked her what the birds were saying. 
They asked when Summer would give them her berries and 
when she would hang ripe cherries on the trees. They 
asked about many sights and sounds in the big world about 
them. 

Tether-peg answered all their questions. She told them 
of the signs. 

When they went to the camp, Tether-peg said, ‘* We shall 
have a fine summer.”’ 


158 The Early Herdsmen 


‘Did the goddess of the woodlands tell you so?”’ asked 
Spin-a-thread. 

“Yes,” replied Tether-peg. ‘‘She told me by showing me 
the buds on the oak trees.”’ 

‘“T thought the oaks were still bare,” said Drag-a-load. 

“They are beginning to bud,” said Tether-peg. ‘But 
the ash trees are still bare. When the oak buds before the 
ash, we have a fine summer.”’ 

‘Does the ash tree ever bud before the oak?’’ asked 
Day’s-eye. 

“Yes, child,’ replied Tether-peg. ‘‘And when it does, 
we have a wet summer.” 

‘‘When the oak buds, it is time for us to move,” said 
Spin-a-thread. 

“That is true,’’ said Tether-peg. ‘‘As soon as the herds 
return, all the clans of the Eagle tribe will move on to sum- 
mer pastures.”’ 

That day, when Many-dogs watched from a high hill by 
the river, he caught sight of something moving along the 
river trail. 

The man bent forward. His eyes were fixed on the moving 
creatures. Never for a moment did he lift his eyes until 
he was sure what they were. 

As he looked long and eagerly, the white horns of cattle 
gleamed from the dark moving mass. 

“The cattle are coming! The cattle are coming!’’ shouted 
Many-dogs. ‘‘They are coming up the river trail.”’ 

The people rejoiced to hear the good news. Men, women, 
and children climbed high hills and looked at the coming 
herds. Other clans watched from neighboring hills, and the 


b 


S 


“The cattle are coming! The cattle are coming!’ shouted Manvy-do 


gs 


160 The Early Herdsmen 


word passed from hill to hill until every clan of the Eagle 
tribe knew the herds had returned. 


THINGS TO DO 


Have you ever heard of Panpipes? What are they? Pan is the name 
the Greeks gave to the great god of nature. He ts the same as the god of the 
woodlands. See if you can make Panpipes and make music on them. 

Dramatize part of this story. 

[Illustrate one of these lines: 

“He caught sight of something moving along the river trail.”’ 


“Word passed from hill to hill.” 


XXXII 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 
Do you think the people will tether any more animals? Do you 
think any of them ever thought they would some time live by taking 
care of flocks and herds? 
How do wild sheep differ from tame sheep? Why are wild sheep more 
hardy and active than tame sheep? How does the wild sheep protect 
itself from enemies? Why do the wild sheep stay in flocks? 


Flow the People Spent the Next Summer 


When the herds returned, all the earth seemed glad. The 
trees put on their tender green garments and the meadows 
put forth green grass. The river gurgled on its way down the 
valley. The birds sang their sweetest songs. Everything 
was as beautiful as if Winter had never been near. 

The herds moved on to the foothills, and the people fol- 
lowed them. All the clans of the Eagle tribe were soon 


How the People Spent the Next Summer 161 


camped on the foothills. All were soon digging pitfalls and 
setting traps for wolves and bears. 

One day the men climbed the mountains to the pastures 
of the wild sheep. ‘‘Hunt the rams,’ said Many-dogs. 
“Spare the bunters that have lambs.” 

“‘Lambs are best,’’ said Do-little. ‘‘When the flock is 
scattered, it is easy to pick up a lamb. The mother sheep 
won't touch us.”’ 

“Not if she is alone,’ added Big-crow. ‘‘But a flock of 
sheep will protect the lambs. They are good bunters.”’ 

“Don’t you remember what they did last summer?” asked 


Gray-wolf. ‘Don’t you remember how they flocked together, 
with the rams on the outside?”’ 

“‘T remember,’’ answered Do-little. ‘‘There was a wall 
of ram’s horns all around the flock.” 

‘“‘Let’s scatter the flock,’’ said Eat-well. ‘‘Then we can 
pick up some lambs.”’ 

“We are not hunting lambs,” said Many-dogs. ‘We are 


out for rams. Get young rams if you can; but if you can’t 
get young ones, get old rams.” 

When they reached the pasture of the wild sheep, they 
hid for a while behind big rocks. From this hiding place 
they could peek out and see without being seen. 

“That’s a big ram,’ said Big-crow, pointing to the leader 
of the flock. 

The men nodded. They were careful not to let the senti- 
nels hear them. 

“There’s a sentinel,’’ whispered Many-dogs, pointing to 
an old ram watching from a high rock. ‘Look out for him!”’ 

‘There’s another,’ whispered Gray-wolf. 


162 The Early Herdsmen 


Soon the men knew where all of the sentinels stood. 
“The young rams are with the flock,’’ whispered Big-crow. 
‘‘T don’t see how we can get them.” 
‘Do you see that steep trail?’’ whispered Many-dogs. 
‘“Do you see how it leads between those high cliffs?”’ 
“T see what you mean,’ replied 


The leader of the flock gave a shrill whistle and bounded up the trail 


How the People Spent the Next Summer 163 


Big-crow. ‘“‘I’ll go around and watch at the gap while you 
frighten them up the trail.”’ 

several of the men went with Big-crow. Others waited 
until his party were lying in wait at the gap. Then they 
came out from under cover, and the sentinels sounded an 
alain. 

The leader of the flock gave a shrill whistle and bounded 
up the trail. The sheep followed, leaping and climbing up 
the rocky trail. 

Big-crow and his men kept very still. They let most of 
the sheep pass. But when some young rams came in sight, 
they pulled their bowstrings and let fly their arrows. 

The men loaded the young rams on their backs and picked 
their way down the trail. When they came to Many-dogs, 
he, too, had something upon his back. 

‘“What have you?”’ called Big-crow. 

‘““A ewe,” rephed Many-dogs. ‘‘She’s lame. She can’t 
keep up with the flock.”’ 

‘“Does she have a lamb?’”’ asked Big-crow. 

“Her lamb is in my game-bag,” replied Many-dogs. 

“A lamb in your game-bag!”’ exclaimed Eat-well and 
Do-little. 

“What is in your game-bag, Eat-well?’’ asked Many- 
dogs. ‘‘What have you, Do-little?”’ 

There was nothing in their game-bags. So they had 
nothing more to say just then. But when they came near 
the camp, they heard the bleating of a lamb. 

“That’s a lamb!’’ cried Eat-well. 

‘“Where is it?’’ asked Do-little. 

‘‘Close at hand,’’ replied Many-dogs. 


164 The Early Herdsmen 


She let the lamb run to ats mother 


Do-little and Eat-well looked puzzled. The other men 
laughed. For the lamb Many-dogs had in his game-bag was 
a live lamb. 

Spin-a-thread tethered the lame ewe and bathed its leg 
in fresh water. And although the ewe was very wild, she 
soon became quiet, for Spin-a-thread soothed the sheep with 
sweet songs and she let the lamb run to its mother. 


THINGS TO DO 
Find out all you can about the horns of wild sheep; of tame ones. How 
do they differ from the horns of the goat? Find out whether ewes had horns 
when all the sheep were wild. 
How did people use the horns of the sheep they killed? 
Model a sheep and a lamb tn bas-relief. 
Dramatize this story. 


What Happened When Drag-a-load Tethered a Calf 165 


Illustrate one of these lines: 
“The leader of the flock gave a shrill whistle and bounded up the trail.” 
“Spin-a-thread tethered the lame ewe.”’ 


XXXIV 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 


Do you like to have an animal pet? Do you think the children in 
the camp would like pets? 

Do you know what a wild cow does with her young calf? If anyone 
should disturb the calf, what would it do? 


What Tlappened When Dyrag-a-load 
Tethered a Calf 


“What shall I bring you, Birdikin?”’ asked Big-crow as 
he was starting with the men to the mountain pastures of 
the wild sheep. 

“Bring me a lamb,” answered Birdikin. ‘I want a little 
bunter.”’ 

‘You shall have one,” said Big-crow. 

‘Bring me a little jumper,” said Day’s-eye. 

All the children wanted pet lambs and kids. Every time 
they saw the men coming, they ran to see if they brought 
any pets. But none of the children except Little-bear and 
Pick-a-tree said anything about a calf. 

The men came home with several mother sheep, and each 
sheep had a lamb. A few days later they brought several 
kids and several mother goats. 

The women tethered and tended the creatures, and the 
children played with the kids and lambs.  Little-bear and 


166 The Early Herdsmen 


Pick-a-tree played with them, but the boys wanted a calf. 

One day Tether-peg said to the boys, ‘‘Find a calf. I’ll 
help you tether it.”’ 

So when the boys were out on the hills they were always 
looking for a calf. 

Drag-a-load found a calf one day. It was only a few days 
old. She found it in a clump of hazel bushes where it had 
been hidden by its mother. 

When Drag-a-load came near the calf, it put its head close 
to the ground. It crouched down like a rabbit. It lay 
perfectly still. 

“Tl tether: the cali,” thought Drae-a-load. 

So she pulled a thong out of her tool bag and tied one 
end to a tree. She slipped the other end about the calf’s 
neck and in doing so touched the calf’s head. 

The moment she touched the wild calf, it jumped up and 
pawed the ground. It gave a loud bellow. It lowered its 
head and rushed straight toward Drag-a-load. 

Had she not been quick, the calf would have knocked her 
down. As it was, she barely escaped. 

The calf came to the end of its tether and pulled this 
way and that. Then again it pawed, again it bellowed, 
and again it lowered its head and rushed straight at Drag- 
a-load. 

This time she was out of the calf’s reach. She laughed 
when she saw how it fought. But amoment later the woman 
was startled by the trampling of many feet. 

Drag-a-load knew what the sound meant. Danger was 
near. She knew it. The moment she heard the trampling 
of feet, she bounded off like a deer. 


What Happened When Drag-a-load Tethered a Calf 167 


It was well that she did. For the cattle were galloping 
over the hills. They had heard the bellowing of the calf. 
They were coming at full speed. 

The earth trembled beneath their feet as they tore through 
the underbrush. Nothing could withstand their onward 
rush. They trampled down everything in their way. 

The men were in sight of the herd when the calf bawled. 
They saw the cattle lift up their heads. They saw the big 
bull dash off followed by the angry herd. 

“It’s a sorry day for the wolf that has meddled with that 
calf,’’ said Big-crow when the herd rushed off. 

“Tt’s not a wolf!’’ shouted Many-dogs. ‘It’s the women!”’ 

Before the words had passed his lips, the men were off at 
full speed. They made a quick dash in the direction from 
which the calf called. 

‘‘Head them off!’ cried Many-dogs to the men. ‘‘ Head 
the herd toward the setting sun!”’ 

Before men and dogs could reach the herd, the cattle had 
rescued the calf. 

“They are headed toward the feeding grounds,”’ called 
Big-crow when he saw the cattle turn. 

“Let them go,” called Many-dogs. ‘‘Let’s run and see 
if anyone was hurt.” 

The men hurried to the spot. No one was there. 

“The gods be praised,’ said Many-dogs. ‘‘The women 
have escaped.” 

‘“What’s this?’”’ asked Gray-wolf, picking up a piece of a 
thong from the trampled leaves and grass. 

“That tells a story,” said Many-dogs. ‘‘Some one tried 
to tether the calf.”’ 


paads qnf{ jp Burmos aaa Kay *f{yv9 ay, fo Burnopzjag ay} pavay pvy afjjvI ay T 


What Happened When Drag-a-load Tethered a Calf 169 


Just as Many-dogs spoke, Drag-a-load returned. She 
heard what he said. “I did it,’”’ she said. ‘‘I tethered the 
calf.”’ 

“What did you do that for?’’ asked Big-crow. 

“The boys want to tame a calf,’’ replied Drag-a-load. 

“The calf belongs to the herd,” said Many-dogs. 

“That is true,” said Gray-wolf. ‘‘The cattle have a right 
to protect their own.” 

“They can do it,” said Drag-a-load. ‘And if you had 
seen that calf fight, you would think he could take care of 
himself.” 

“What did he do?”’ asked Big-crow. 

By this time the women and children had come to the spot. 
All laughed when Drag-a-load showed them what the calf 
did. And again they laughed when she said, ‘‘ When I heard 
the trampling of many feet, I took to my heels and ran.”’ 

“Better not try to tether any more calves,” said Big- 
crow. “A calf is too rough for a pet.” 

‘Don’t touch the calves,’ added Many-dogs. ‘The 
cattle are our friends. Let us not provoke them by meddling 
with their young.” 

Tether-peg heard all that was said, but she spoke not a 
single word. Her thoughts went back to the lame cow and 
to her sweet milk. A far-away look came to her eyes. 
Then they shone with a clear light. Little-bear saw it and 
wondered about it. He wondered, too, why she did not 
speak. 

THINGS TO DO. 

When you have a chance to see a young calf, watch tt and see what it 

does. Do you think the calves on a farni are as weld as the calves of wild cows ? 


170 The Early Herdsmen 


Model in clay a young calf crouched down like a rabbit. 
Dramatize part of this story. 
Illustrate one of these lines: 
“Tt jumped up and pawed the ground.” 
“The cattle came galloping over the hills. 


2-3 


XXXV 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 


Why were people who lived long ago afraid to cross a high range of 
mountains? Have you ever crossed a mountain range? If so, how? 

What is a mountain gap’ Find a picture of one. 

Can you think of a way of knowing where a gap is without having 
seen it? 


flow Lether-peg Pointed Out a Way 
Through the Mountains 


Once more Winter came in his wrath. The earth with- 
held her food. But gentle Summer at length returned and 
again the earth put forth her fruits. 

The people rejoiced at the coming of Summer, yet were 
sad when they looked at the flocks and herds. For each 
year they were smaller and smaller. Each year game was 
more-scarce. 

Before moving to the summer pastures Many-dogs was 
made chief of the tribe. Finding the game scarcer than 
ever, he now sent messengers to the clans to call the leaders 
together. 

The following day Big-bear and Bluebird arrived. Big- 
bear was Tether-peg’s eldest brother and chief at the camp 


How Tether-peg Pointed a Way Through the Mountains 171 


where her brothers 
lived. They had 
married Bluebird 
and her sisters, who 
belonged to the 
Deer clan. 

“Speak to your 
uncle,’ said Tether- 
peg to the children 
when the men and 
women had greeted 
their guests. 

The children gath- 
ered about their 
uncle and began to 
talk with him. Now 
and then they cast 
shy glances at Blue- | 3 
bird of the Deer =m 
clan. 

“When are you 
coming for train= 
ing?’’ asked Big-bear, looking at Little-bear. 

“Very soon, I hope,’’ replied Little-bear, who had talked 
many times with his mother about going to his uncle’s for 
training. For in those days, when a boy passed from his 
mother’s training, he was sent to the men of his mother’s 
clan. 

““T want you to train me,’ 
I come?”’ 


“When are you coming for training?” asked Big-bear 


’ 


said Pick-a-tree. ‘“‘When may 


172 The Early Herdsmen 


“Just as soon as your mother says you are ready,” replied 
Big-bear. 

They have much to learn before going,” said Tether-peg. 
“But they are doing very well. It won’t be long before we 
shall send them to you.” 

No more could be said at this time, for other guests now 
arrived. But as long as Big-bear stayed in the camp the 
boys looked at him with wonder. They lstened to every 
word he spoke. 

When, at last, all the leaders had arrived, the people 
feasted and danced. Then they sat around the council 
fire to talk about what should be done. 

‘“Game is scarce,’’ said Many-dogs when at length every- 


’ 


body was quiet. ‘“‘Shall we stay here and see our tribe grow 
weaker and ever weaker?”’ 

““No, no!’’ shouted the leaders. ‘“‘Our children shall not 
starve.” 

‘Let us search for new lands,” said Big-bear. 

“Search for new lands!”’ repeated Night-hawk. ‘Where 


can we find them?”’’ 

“There are no new hunting grounds in all this land,” 
said Rook. 

‘There are none on this side of the mountains,” said Big- 


bear. ‘‘Many times I have wondered what lies beyond the 
mountains.” 
“Beyond the mountains!’’ exclaimed Night-hawk. ‘‘No 


man knows what is beyond the mountains.” 

‘“No man has scaled those peaks,’ added Many-dogs. 
‘No man has climbed higher than the pastures of the big 
jumpers.’ 


How Tether-peg Pointed a Way Through the Mountains 173 


“‘No man dare do it,’ cried Night-hawk. ‘‘The peaks 
are rugged and steep. No man knows what may lurk among 
those snowy crags and rocks.”’ 


“Forget not the gods,”’ said Tether-peg. “Sky looks down 
over all.” 
“There is no path,”’ cried Big-bear. ‘‘There is no path 


across those peaks.”’ 

“There is a path which no man knoweth,”’ replied Tether- 
peg. “Sky knows every path. Sun lights up the way.”’ 

The men shook their heads. 

At last Night-hawk broke the silence. ‘‘What man can 
tread those rugged peaks?’’ 

‘No man can do it,’’ replied Rook. ‘Eagles and vultures 
may fly around the peaks, but no man can pass that way.” 

“The path is not there,’ said Tether-peg. ‘“‘It is not by 
the way of rugged, snow-capped peaks.”’ 

‘There 1s no path,” cried Night-Hawk. 

“There is a path,” replied the wise woman. “There is a 
path that leads through a gap to new lands beyond.”’ 


A a au cried Big-bear. ‘Are jou sure there’s a ga a 
fo} o 
“There 1S a ga a said Tether- ICL. “4 f this I am sure.”’ 
oO ] ran 


“T see no sign of a gap,’’ said Night-hawk. 

“Nor can I,’”’ added Rook. 

““Where is it?’’ asked Many-dogs. 

“There,” replied Tether-peg, pointing to a rugged peak 
some distance to the right. 

““T see nothing but peak after peak,’’ said Big-bear. 

“Look at that peak,’ said Tether-peg. ‘‘ Beyond is one 
that is higher. The way leads through a gap between those 
rugged peaks.”’ 


174 The Early Herdsmen 


_ ee. EA. i 
“The way leads through a gap between those rugged peaks’’ 


“Let us find this gap!’’ cried Many-dogs. ‘Let us send 
runners to the spot.” 
‘Let us send runners!”’ cried all the leaders. ‘Let’s search 


out a gap in the mountains. Let’s find a way to fresh 
hunting grounds.”’ 


THINGS TO DO 


Model in sand or clay a mountain range and show a mountain gap. 
Find pictures of mountain passes and gaps. 
Dramatize this story. 
Illustrate one of these lines: 
““Our children shall not starve.’”’ 
“*The way leads through a gap between those rugged peaks.’”’ 


How the Cattle Were Driven Through a Mountain Gap 175 
», OS Gal 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 


Do you think the people will find a gap? Do you think they will 
find new hunting grounds? If they move on, what will happen to the 
herds they leave behind? Have you ever driven cattle? 


flow the Cattle Were Driven Through 


a Mountain Gap 


Tether-peg was right. There was a gap in the moun- 
tains. The runners brought the good news. ‘‘We found a 
gap. We passed through it,’’ they said. ‘“‘We have looked 
out on a pleasant land.” 

“Ts there good hunting in the new land?”’ asked Many- 
dogs. 

“There are goats and sheep on the hills,”’ rephed Big- 
crow. ‘‘There are good feeding grounds.” 

“Did you see any cattle?’’ asked Many-dogs. 


“Not many,’ replied Big-crow. ‘But I heard the bellow- 
ing of bulls.” 
‘Let us move on,” said Many-dogs. ‘‘Let us go to the 


new land.”’ 

All the people were eager to go. They began at once to 
make ready for the journey. While they were picking up 
their things, they began to talk of the herds. 

‘Who will keep off the wolves when we are gone?”’ asked 
Big-crow. 

‘‘No one will do it,” replied Drag-a-load. 

“The wolves will come out of their dens, they will pick 
up the young calves,” said Spin-a-thread. 


176 The Early Herdsmen 


“They will pounce upon the stray cows,’’ added Root- 
digger. 

“We have kept off the wolves many years,’’ said Many- 
dogs. ‘‘I don’t ike to think what will happen when we leave 
them behind.” 

“Why leave them behind?” asked Tether-peg. ‘‘They 
are our friends. Let them go with us.” 

“Why can’t the cattle go with us?”’ asked Spin-a-thread 
after a few moments’ silence. 

“Go with us!’’ cried Big-crow. ‘Each herd stays on its 
own range. The herd that tries to leave its range is bound 
to get into trouble.”’ 

‘Whose herd is nearest the gap?”’ asked Many-dogs. 

“Ours,’’ replied Big-crow. 

‘Perhaps we can head them toward the gap,”’ said Many- 
dogs. ‘‘Perhaps we can drive them through.”’ 

‘“‘T wonder if we can,” said Big-crow. 

“We can try,’ said Many-dogs. 

‘‘What if the herd becomes angry?’’ said Do-little. ‘‘What 
if the cattle charge upon us?”’ 

‘“‘Let’s not risk it,’’ said Eat-well. ‘“‘Let’s kill them and 
eat them now.”’ 

“No, no!’’ shouted the men. ‘‘We won't kill the last of 
the herd.” 

Tether-peg now arose and said, ‘The cattle shall go on 
before us.” 

“They shall,’ added Many-dogs. “I, myself, will lead 
the men in driving the cattle through the gap.”’ 

‘Shall we call the other clans?”’ asked Big-crow. ‘‘Shall 
we all work together and drive all the herds through the gap?”’ 


How the Cattle Were Driven Through a Mountain Gap 177 


“Ours is nearest the gap,’ answered Many-dogs. ‘‘ Let 
us drive our herd through first. And let us seek the aid of 
the gods in this dangerous work.” 

“The god of the woodlands will help you,” said Tether- 
peg. ‘‘He has charge of the herds. Even now I will offer 
him gifts and ask him to drive the herd through the gap.”’ 

That night Many-dogs invented a dance. It was one to 
train men to drive wild cattle through the gap. He gave 
signals with his horn and taught the men what he wanted 
them to do. 

Before starting out the next morning Many-dogs went to 
Tether-peg and asked her for a charm. 

“Take this,’ said the wise woman. ‘‘Go ahead and drop 
little lumps at spots along the way.” 

Many-dogs went ahead with the charm. He took a few 
lumps from the bag and dropped them near where the dun 
bull was feeding. The bull came and licked them up with 
his tongue and eagerly followed to the next spot on which 
Many-dogs had dropped a few more. 

Each time the bull moved, he moved in the direction of 
the gap. Each time the cattle followed, so they, too, kept 
going on toward the mountain gap. 

Meanwhile men and dogs followed close upon the herd. 
The men were armed with big sticks as well as with bows 
and arrows. And they all had whistles and horns and some 
of them carried drums. 

“That charm works like magic,’ said Big-crow as he 
watched the dun bull follow Many-dogs. 

‘“’Tether-peg 1s wise,’’ added Gray wolf. ‘‘The charm is 
a gift of the gods.”’ 


ST rene. 


tome 


Many-dogs went ahead with the charm 


How the Eagle Tribe Moved to a High Table-land 179 


When the last of the herd had passed through the gap, 
the men sent up a loud shout. They leaped and danced 
and cried out. For never before since time began had men 
driven a wild herd to a new land. 


THINGS TO DO 
Invent a dance to show how the cattle might be driven through a gap. 
Guess what it was that Tether-peg gave Many-dogs for a charm. Where 
do you think Tether-peg got it? Where does the salt we use come from? 

Dramatize part of this story. 
Illustrate one of these lines: 

“The bull came and licked them up with his tongue.” 

‘“‘ Fach time the cattle followed.”’ 


XXXVII 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 


Do you think all the clans of the Eagle tribe will want to drive their 
herds through the gap? Do you think they can do it? 
Have you ever seen a high table-land? If so, how did it look? 


Flow the fragle Tribe Moved to a High 
/ able-land 


When the men returned from the gap, Many-dogs signaled 
to all the clans of the tribe. .All understood the signals and 
and made ready to move. 

When Big-bear heard what had happened, he wanted to 
drive his herd. 

“Take the women and children first,’’ said Many-dogs. 
“You can come back for your herd.”’ 


At last they reached the mountain gap and paused by a stream of fresh water 


How the Eagle Tribe Moved to a High Table-land 181 


All the clans were soon on the way toward the mountain 
gap. All were soon in one long line, clan following clan. 
Dogs dragged most of the packs, and many of the women led 
sheep and goats, and the older children led kids and lambs. 

At last they reached the mountain gap and paused by a 
stream of fresh water. They quenched their thirst. They 
looked up at the rugged mountains over their heads. 

While they were talking about the mountains, Many-dogs 
called, “‘Move forward! Pass through the gap!”’ 

The long line again moved on. When the last person 
passed through the gap, Many-dogs blew his horn. 

“Halt at this spot!’’ he cried. 

The people halted. The long line broke up and the people 
looked out on the new land. 

“Tt is just like a big basin,’’ said Spin-a-thread when she 
caught sight of the table-land. 

“The basin has a big brim,’ said Drag-a-load. ‘‘See! 
High mountains are on every side.” 

“The basin has a rough bottom,” said Root-digger point- 
ing to the ranges of hills which crossed the high table-land. 

“It’s a hilly country,” said Tether-peg. ‘Hills lie beyond 
hills.”’ 

“There are sheep on the hills,’ said Gray-wolf. 

‘There are goats on all the mountains,’”’ added Big-crow. 

‘‘Where are our cattle?”’ asked Drag-a-load. 

“Down there by the stream,’”’ answered Big-crow. 

“The land is well watered,” said Many-dogs. 

At this point the women kindled fires to roast the small 
game picked up on the way. But the men looked out on the 
new land and talked about what they saw. 


182 The Early Herdsmen 


“There are sheep on the hills, 


” 


said Gray-wolf 


“We shall always find plenty of fresh water here,” said 
Big-bear. ‘‘Three good streams flow down from these 
mountains.”’ 

“Can you see the river they join?”’ asked Night-hawk. 

“Yes,” replied Big-bear. ‘It’s the river that flows from 
that big dark forest at our left.” 

‘““There are streams flowing down from those mountains,” 
said Many-dogs, pointing to the mountains at the north of 
the high table-land. 

‘“There are lakes, too,’ added Gray-wolf. ‘I think we 
shall find many ducks.” 

‘“T’m glad we found the way through the mountain gap,”’ 
said Night-hawk. ‘I wonder how Tether-peg knew it was 
there.” 

Before anyone could answer, the simple meal was ready. 
When this was over, the leaders of the clans gathered around 
the wise woman. 


How the Eagle Tribe Moved to a High Table-land 183 


No one knew how she had learned of the gap. Some 
said a bird had told her. So now Many-dogs asked the 
wise woman how it was she knew of the gap. 

“The birds pointed out the way,” replied Tether-peg. 

‘Did they tell you there was a gap in this place?”’ asked 
Many-dogs. 

“They marked it out by their flight,’ she replied. 

‘““Marked it out by their flight!’ repeated Rook. ‘‘I 
don’t understand.”’ 

“The birds know the mountain passes,’’ said Tether-peg. 
“They know where the mountain streams flow.” 

Rook looked puzzled. He shook his head. 

‘“Many flocks pass this way when they fly to the north,” 
added Tether-peg. ‘‘At the beginning of winter they come 
this way when they fly to the south.” 

‘‘Do birds know where the gaps are?’’ asked Night-hawk. 

“They do,” replied Tether-peg. ‘Birds are wise. They 
know the best way to go.” 

Many of the people did not understand how she had 
learned of the gap. They thought the birds had told 
her about it. But as the years passed, the children who ate 
the flesh of the eagle learned how to find mountain gaps. 
Day’s-eye and Birdikin learned to find them by watching 
great flocks of birds in their flight. 


THINGS TO DO 


Model in the sand box a high table-land such as the people saw. Model 
the mountains that surround it and show where gaps and passes are. Show 
where the rivers, streams, and lakes are. Show where there is a dark forest. 

Dramatize this story. 


184 The Early Herdsmen 


Illustrate one of these lines: 
‘All were soon in one long line, clan following clan.” 
“* Down there by the stream,’ answered Big-crow.” 


XXXVITI 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 
Do you think there were many wolves and bears in the new land? 
If so, where were their dens? 
Do you think there were other clans in the new land? 
What kind of games and plays do you think the children would play? 
Why? Do you know who invented most of the plays you now play? 


How the People Lived on the Table-land 


Each clan of the Eagle tribe was soon camped on 
anew hunting ground. The men were then eager to go back 
and bring the cattle through the gap. 

Big-bear and his party went first, and Tether-peg gave 
them a charm. They brought the cattle to the new land 
without much trouble. 

Other parties went, one by one. Each asked Tether-peg 
for a charm. And most of the clans were able to bring their 
cattle without any loss. 

When Rook and his party went for their herd, Rook lost 
the charm Tether-peg gave him. When they tried to head 
the cattle toward the gap, the herd charged upon them. 

The men set dogs on the cattle. They waved their sticks 
and beat drums. They turned the cattle, but they were not 
able to drive them through the gap. Time and again Rook 
and his men tried to drive the cattle through. At last, they 
gave up and went home, leaving the herd behind them. 


186 The Early Herdsmen 


While Rook was away, there was great excitement in 
Many-dogs’ camp. <A big bear had sneaked up and carried 
off one of the tethered goats. 

‘There is his track,’’ said Big-crow. 

‘There is another!’’ cried Many-dogs. ‘‘Let’s track the 
bear to his den.” 

The men set out with the dogs. They tracked the bear 
to his den. Before night they came home bringing the 
carcass of a grizzly. 

“There are many wolves in this land,” said Many-dogs. 
‘‘Let’s find their dens. Let’s kill off the whelps before they 
are big enough to hunt.”’ 

One morning when the men were hunting wolves, Little- 
bear said, ‘‘Pick-a-tree, I wish we could go and hunt with 
the men.” 

“It won't be long before you can,” said Drag-a-load. 

“We must take training first,’’ said Little-bear, who had 
not forgotten what his Uncle Big-bear had said. 

“When can we go to Uncle Big-bear’s camp?’ asked 
Pick-a-tree. 

“In a few years,’’ replied Drag-a-load. ‘‘But come now, 
let me fit this goat skin to your back.”’ 

While Drag-a-load was fitting a raw goat skin to his 
back, Pick-a-tree asked, ‘‘ Will it be just like Little-bear’s?”’ 

“Yes, child,’’ answered Drag-a-load. ‘And I’ll make you 
a headdress of the goat’s horns. It will be just like Little- 
DearS. 

Before leaving the foothills Tether-peg had fitted a raw 
goat skin to Little-bear’s back. It shrunk when drying, 
and now it fitted close to the boy’s body. 


How the People Lived on the Table-land 187 


“T can jump like a goat when I wear the goat skin,” said 
Little-bear. ‘See, I’m a big jumper!” 

When Pick-a-tree’s goat-skin was dry, the boys, dressed 
in their goat-skins, looked lke two wild goats. They capered, 
they jumped from rock to rock, and they played they were 
wild goats. 

Sometimes they played they were wild sheep. Then 
Little-bear said, ““I’mabigram. I’m the leader of the flock. 
You must follow me.” 


“T’m a sentinel,’ said Day’s-eye. ‘I stand guard over 
the flock. I keep off the wolves and bears.”’ 
“T'mi a bear,’ said Pick-a-tree, “‘I Il hide in the bushes. 


If you don’t keep a good watch, I'll carry off a lamb.”’ 

All the children took their places. Those that were the 
sheep and lambs of the flock began to nibble grass. Then 
Pick-a-tree crawled out of a thicket just as a big bear would do. 

Those who were sentinels now gave an alarm. Little- 
bear whistled and bounded off, followed by those who were 
sheep and lambs of the flock. 

The bear caught one lamb; then they played that the 
one who had been caught was a bear too. So they played 
the game again, with two bears instead of one. 

From the time the first goat was tethered, the children 
played with lambs and kids. Many of their pets were now 
full grown, and some of them were tame. Those that were 
tame were let loose from their tethers and allowed to run 
about. 

It was great fun to play with the goats. Sometimes the 
children rode on the goats’ backs. And many a time a 
goat reared up and a child tumbled off her back. But all 


188 The Early Herdsmen 


. \ ( The bovs, dressed in their 


goat skins, looked like two 

wild goats. They capered, they 
jumped from rock to rock, and 
they played they were wild goats 


the children tried again and again, though they had many a 
tumble. 

And so the children played with the goats while the men 
trapped wolves and bears. They learned many good lessons 
while playing with their half-wild pets. 


THINGS TO DO 


What animal games do you know? Make up one. 

Dramatize part of this story. 

Illustrate one of these lines: 
“The boys, dressed in their goat-skins, looked like two wild goats.” 
“The herd charged upon them.” 
“A goat reared up and a child tumbled off her back.” 


How the People Tethered Two Cows and a Calf 189 
».&,S.4 b.4 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 


What do you think the men would do toward taming wild cattle? 
What would the women do? Could the children help in any way? If 
so, how? 


How the People Tethered Two Cows 
and a Calf 


One morning Drag-a-load came rushing to the camp in 
the greatest excitement. 

“What's the matter?’’ asked Root-digger. 

As soon as Drag-a-load could get her breath, she gasped, 
“A calf! It’s a calf! I’ve found a calf!” 

“Did it knock you down?”’ asked Spin-a-thread, who had 
not forgotten the day that Drag-a-load tethered a young 
calf. ‘‘Did you tether the calf?”’ 

“Tether it! No!’’ cried Drag-a-load. ‘“‘I tethered one 
calf; I’ll never tether another.” 

‘“Where is it?’’ asked Tether-peg. 

‘“Down there,’ replied Drag-a-load, pointing down the 
troughlike valley of a tumbling stream. 

“Ts the herd near?’’ asked the wise woman. 

“Tt is not in sight,’’ replied Root-digger. 

“T haven't heard the cattle at all this morning,” said 
Spin-a-thread. 

“Bring thongs,’”’ said Tether-peg to the women. ‘‘Come 
with me.”’ 

“It’s there,’’ said Drag-a-load as the women drew near a 
clump of hazel bushes. 


190 The Early Herdsmen 


. The calf jumped up and pawed the ground 


“T will tether the calf,’ said Tether-peg. ‘‘Set a snare 
in that narrow path. The cow 1s hkely to come that way.” 

The wise woman made one end of a thong fast to a sap- 
ling before she touched the calf. This done, she slipped a 
loop about the calf’s neck and stepped out of its reach. 

Now the calf kept perfectly still until Tether-peg touched 
it. Then it jumped up and pawed the ground. It bellowed. 
It lowered its head and rushed upon the wise woman. 

The calf came with such force it would have knocked her 
down had she been within reach. As it was, the calf vented 
its rage without doing her harm. 

Seeing that the snare was now set, Tether-peg said, ‘Come 
away. This is all we can do now.” 


How the People Tethered Two Cows and a Calf 191 


They had scarcely left when there came to their ears 
the sound of crashing underbrush. ‘‘She’s coming!’ cried 
Drag-a-load. And the woman bounded off lke a young 
deer. 

“Keep still,’ said Tether-peg to her sisters who stayed by 
her side. ‘‘Let’s see what will happen.” 

“Something has happened,’’ whispered Spin-a-thread as 
they heard the cow stamping the ground and crashing down 
the underbrush. 


‘““She is caught,’ said Root-digger. ‘‘She is caught in our 
snare. She is trying to break away.”’ 
“She can’t do it,’ replied Spin-a-thread. ‘“‘She can’t 


break that thong.” 
If a cow could 
have broken the 
thong, that cow 
would have done 
so. She pushed, 
she pulled, she 
kicked, she gored, 
she jumped, she = 
pawed, she bawled.~~ 
But all was tono / 
purpose. The 
snare held her fast. 
Drag-a-load now 
came back. She 
listened to the 


ee ane Sh hed, si lled, she ki bed I 2 sh d 
She pushed, she pulled, she kicked, she gored, she jumped, 
underbrush F sal | she pawed, she bawled 


192 The Early Herdsmen 


should n’t like to meet that cow at close range,’’ she said as 
the cow kept on trying to break away. 

“There is no danger of your doing so while you are able 
to run,’’ remarked Spin-a-thread. 

“She's an ugly beast,’ said Drag-a-load. ‘We shall never 
be able to tame her.”’ 

Many-dogs’ horn was now heard. 

“He is calling,’ cried Spin-a-thread. “He is calling 
Tether-peg. I wonder what’s the matter.”’ 

Before the words had left her lips the wise woman was 
out of sight. The trouble was this: Early in the morning 
the men were hunting, when Big-crow caught sight of two 
wolves sneaking after a cow. 

“Wolves! Wolves!”’ cried Big-crow. ‘They are after one 
of our cows!” 

The men followed Big-crow’s lead. They came to the 
spot just as the wolves pounced upon a young cow. They 
killed the wolves. They rescued the cow. But some of the 
men wanted to kill her. 

“Do not kill her,’ said Many-dogs. ‘“‘Let us keep 
her.”’ And with these words he tethered the cow to a 
young tree. 

“Ts the herd near?’’ asked Gray-wolf when the cow began 
to bawl. “If the cattle hear her, we had better get away 
from this place.”’ 

“They are not in sight,’’ said Big-crow. 

“T haven’t heard them all the morning,’ added Many- 
dogs. 

When they were sure the cattle had not heard, Do-little 
said, ‘‘Let’s kill her. She can’t run with the herd.” 


How the People Tethered Two Cows and a Calf 193 


Big-crow caught sight of two wolves sneaking after a cow 


“‘No,”’ exclaimed Many-dogs. ‘‘She has a calf. We 
must n’t kill the mother of a young calf.”’ 

“The wolves have picked up the calf before this,’ cried 
at-well, who was eager to get a taste of tender beef. 

All the men liked tender beef. Several of them now raised 
their voices and said that the cow should be killed. They 
even started toward the cow and lifted their stone axes. 

‘Back! back!’’ cried Many-dogs as he stepped between 
the men and the cow. ‘‘Keep your hands off! It is not 
for you to overthrow the customs of our tribe.”’ 


’ 


194 The Early Herdsmen 


Angry words were now spoken. There were many threat- 
ening looks. Then it was that Many-dogs signaled to the 
wise woman with his horn. 


THINGS TO DO 


Model in the sand box a trough-like valley with a tumbling stream. Can 
you tell what happens to such a valley after many years of rain and melting 
snow? 

Dramatize part of this story. 

Illustrate one of these lines: 

‘“* She is trying to break away. 
“Tt 1s not for you to overthrow the customs of our tribe.’”’ 


yyy 


pi 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 


Do you think the people ought to kill the cow they rescued from 
the wolves? Why, or why not? How do you think they could get her 
to the camp? 


Flow the Birds Answered Tether-peg s 
Ouestions 


When Tether-peg arrived, Many-dogs, Big-crow, Gray- 
wolf, and others were standing with their backs to the wounded 
cow. Others faced them, shaking their fists and threatening 
them with clubs. 

‘‘Lay down your weapons,” said the wise woman. “It 
is not right for clansmen to quarrel.” 

When the wise woman spoke, they obeyed. They laid 
down their clubs. They gave up the quarrel. They put off 
their ugly looks. 


How the Birds Answered Tether-peg’s Questions 195 


said the wise woman. ‘ 


Pay, : pena 
Bee ee See 
“Lay down vour weapons,” 


is not right for clansmen to quarrel” 


Tether-peg knew at a glance what had caused all the 
trouble. No one needed to speak a word. “Sit down,” 
she said. ‘‘Sit down on the grass and rest.” 

The men sat down upon the grass. They breathed a sigh 
ot relier, 

“Let us talk with the birds,” said Tether-peg. ‘They 
will tell us the will of the gods.” 

The men looked up to the trees. Many birds were flitting 
among the branches, chirping and singing sweet songs. All 
listened while the wise woman talked with the birds. 

First Tether-peg looked up to the great god Sky, then 
she looked at a bird perched on a high branch. 


196 The Early Herdsmen 


“Speak, speak!’’ said the wise woman. ‘What shall we 
do with this brockle-faced cow?” 

At first there was such a chirping and twittering no one 
could be sure what was said. 

‘‘One bird said, ‘Kill her,’’’ said Eat-well. 

“Shall we kill Brockle-face?’’ asked Tether-peg as she 
looked up to the little bird. 

A clear voice came down through the branches: 


‘“No-o! No-o! No-o! 
Don’t kill her! Don’t kill her! 
Feed her! Feed her! Feed her!”’ 


Tether-peg repeated the words so all might understand. 
Again Tether-peg questioned the birds. ‘Shall we leave 
the cow in this place?’’ she asked. 
A dove flew down and called out, ‘“No! No! No!” 
“Shall we take this cow to our camp?”’ asked Tether-peg 
as she looked at the dove. 
“Del Do! Dol” sane the Dove, "D0! Dol Dol 
“The gods have spoken,’’ said the wise woman. 
“We must obey,’ added Many-dogs. With these words 
he arose and stepped toward the cow. 
“She can t walk.’ ’-said 
J, Big-crow. ‘‘How are we 
_£>¥ going to get her to the 
camp?” 
‘ Drag her,’’ said Gray- 
wolf. 
“Don’t hurt her,’ said Tether-peg. ‘‘Take a forked 
branch. Bind twigs across it and put the cow upon it.” 


ee ae 
BS ees 


1 Eski 


er 


mo sled 


How the Birds Answered Tether-peg’s Questions 197 


The men then cut off a big forked branch with their pol- 
ished stone axes. They trimmed off the small branches and 
left a strong framework. Across this they 
bound strong twigs. Then they placed the 
sledge beside the cow and lifted her upon it. 

Meanwhile Tether-peg had been soothing 
the cow by humming a sweet, low song. 
She was doing her best to comfort the cow 
and keep her from being afraid. 

‘Where are the dogs?” asked Gray-wolf when 
the cow was loaded upon the drag. 

Many-dogs whistled, and the 
whole pack came bounding to his 
side. 

Howler and Growler were 

SETHE CRORE SUE hitched first. Then came Barker 
and Biter. Cubby and Bushy-tail came next in the six-dog team. 

“Let’s help the dogs start the load,’”’ said Many-dogs 
when the dogs pulled and the load did not move. 

Several men now took hold of the traces and pulled until the 
load begantomove. Then the dogs had no trouble in dragging 
the load to the camp. 

The men moved the cow \%& 
from the sledge when they 
came into the camp. This © 
done, they looked puzzled. 
They didn’t know what to do. 

Just then a little bird in a tree began to trill and sing: 

“Te! te! te! te! te! te! 
Tr-r-r-r!) Tr-r-r-r!)  Tr-r-r-r!”’ 


sl sledge 


198 The Early Herdsmen 


“What is the bird saying?” asked Many-dogs. 
“Listen,” said Tether-peg. 
Again the bird sang: 
‘Te, te, te! Te, te, te! 

Tiytigtsl Wet ar 

Tr-r-r-r!) 9 Tr-r-r-r!”’ 
The men still were puzzled. 
Tether-peg smiled as she said, ‘‘Don’t you understand? 

The little bird says, ‘Tie her.’”’ 


THINGS TO DO 
Trill like a bird. Coo like a dove. Sing ltke a canary. 
Find a forked branch and make a simple sledge. Tell why such sledges 
were very useful before people knew how to make carts. 

Dramatize part of thrs story. 
Illustrate one of these lines: 

““Tay down your weapons,’ said the wise woman.” 

““TLet’s help the dogs start the load. ”’ 


GBI 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 
Do you think you could tether a wild calf? Do you think you could 


tether a tame calf? 
If cows and calves are brought to the camp, who do you think will 


be most pleased? 


What Hlappened When Little-bear Found 
a Calf 


While the men were tethering Brockle-face, they heard 
the bellowing of a calf. The cow raised her head. She 


What Happened When Little-bear Found a Calf 199 


gave a long bawl. She tried to get up and go to the calf. 

“Wolves are after that calf,’’ said Big-crow. 

“Come, Barker! Come, Biter!’’ called Many-dogs. 
“Come, let’s help that calf.’’ 

“I’m not going to chase after a calf,’’ said Do-little when 
all but Eat-well and himself had left the camp. 

“There won’t be anything left of it when they get there,” 
said Eat-well. 

The men ran fast, but the dogs ran faster. Before the 
men reached the spot, they heard the dogs barking, the 
calf bellowing, and the boys shouting at the top of their 
voices. 

“Go away!”’ cried Little-bear. ‘‘Go away, Barker! Go 
away, Biter!’ 

Now Many-dogs knew at a glance what all the trouble 
was about. A smile passed over his face as he ran to help 
the boys. 

They were having a hard tussle with the calf. They 
were trying to lead it, but the calf would not be led. The 
boys pulled one way and the calf pulled another. Now they 
pulled it a few steps, then the calf dragged both boys 
through the underbrush. 

“Call off the dogs!’’ shouted Little-bear when he heard 
the men’s voices. 

The men called, and the dogs obeyed. 

Many-dogs then seized the calf. He threw it upon the 
ground. There he held it while men and boys came to see 
the calf. 

“T’m not going to hurt you, little calf,’ said Many-dogs 
as he patted the calf on the head. 


200 The Early Herdsmen 


The boys “pulled one way and the calf pulled another 


“What were you trying to do with that calf?”’ asked 
Big-crow when the boys had taken a long breath. 


‘“We were taking it to camp,’’ answered Little-bear. ‘“‘We 
are going to tame it.”’ 

“Tame it!’’ cried Big-crow laughing. ‘‘You can’t tame 
Gal 


“What made you try to lead it?” asked Many-dogs. 
“Why didn’t you tether it?” 
“We did try to tether it,’ replied Little-bear. 


What Happened When Little-bear Found a Calf 201 


“Before we could tie the thong to a tree the calf fought 
us,’ added Pick-a-tree. 


“T see,” said Many-dogs. ‘You forgot to tie the thong 
tosa tree belore you touched the calf.” 
“‘Let me tether it now,” said Little-bear. ‘‘You hold the 


calf and I'll tie the thong to a tree.”’ 

“You must wait till we take it to the camp,” answered 
Many-dogs. 

Lifting the calf upon his shoulders, Many-dogs carried it 
tO: the carn: 

“You may tether it here by its mother,” he said as he put 
down his load. 

“Where did you find the cow?” asked Pick-a-tree when 
Little-bear was tethering the calf. 

When Many-dogs told the boys how they got Brockle- 
face, Little-bear asked, ‘“‘Are you going to tame her?”’ 

“No,” replied Many-dogs. “We brought her here to keep 
her away from the wolves.”’ 

‘Let me tame her,” said Little-bear. 

“Ask your mother about it,’’ answered Many-dogs. 

“Cows can’t be tamed,’ said Big-crow to the men. 
‘Calves can’t be tamed. They were never meant to be 
tethered.” 

“That’s just what I think,” said Drag-a-load, who now 
came and told how the cow that had been snared was 
acting. “If I had my way, we should never tether another 
cow.” 

This was the first the men had heard of the cow the 
women had caught. 

‘““Let’s go and see her,”’ said Gray-wolf. 


202 The Early Herdsmen 


“Come,” said Spin-a-thread. ‘‘I’ll show you where she 
is. Her calf is close beside her.” 

“Her calf!’’ cried Big-crow. ‘‘What are you doing with 
her calf?” 

“We tethered the calf this morning,”’ said Spin-a-thread. 
“Then we set a snare for its mother.” 

When they reached the spot where the cow was tethered, 
she was hooking and kicking and jumping and trampling 
everything within reach. 

‘She is ugly,’ said Big-crow. ‘You can’t do anything 
with her.” 

“Yes, we can,’ replied Spin-a-thread. ‘‘We caught: her 
and now we are going to tame her.”’ 

“You can’t do it,” said Big-crow. 

“Let her go,” said Gray-wolf. 

‘Kall her,’’ said Eat-well. 

A bird overhead now burst into song. The people stood 
still and listened. 

‘What did the bird say?”’ asked Many-dogs when the 
song was ended. 

“The bird said this,’’ replied Tether-peg: 

‘“No-o! No! No! 
Don’t kill her! Don’t kill her! 
Lead her! Lead her! Lead her!”’ 


THINGS TO DO 


Model in bas-relief Little-bear and Pick-a-tree trying to lead the calf. 
Dramatize part of thts story. 
Illustrate one of these lines: 

“Go away!’ cried Little-bear.”’ 

“Tether tt here by tts mother.’”’ 


Hooker and Brockle-face 203 


Aled 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 


How do you think the men will get the cow that was snared to the 
camp? Do you think an animal can be tamed if it does not want to be? 
Which of the two cows do you think can be tamed the more easily? Why? 


flooker and Brockle-face 


Not one of the men dared disobey what the bird told them 
to do. They found strong straps. They seized the cow by 
the horns. They fastened the strap about her neck. 

The cow fought desperately, but she could not get away. 
Two men held each of her horns, and two more grabbed her 
by the neck. One man held her by the tail while others 
marched at either side carrying big sticks. In this way the 
wild cow was brought to the camp. 

“She’s an ugly brute,”’ said Big-crow when at last she was 
tethered to a tree. 

“She’s a hooker,’’ said Gray-wolf. 

“Hooker!” cried Drag-a-load. ‘‘Let’s call her Hooker.” 

From that day this was the name of the wild cow caught 
in a snare. 

Hooker’s calf was brought to the camp and tethered near 
its mother. But even this did not quiet Hooker. She 
hooked, she pawed, she pulled, she gored, she bawled. She 
was not quiet a moment. 

“Let us leave her now,” said Tether-peg when Hooker 
refused the food they offered. 

So they left Hooker alone with her calf and attended to 
Brockle-face. She let them bathe her wounds and she took 


y 


7 
‘ 


Hooker and Brockle-face 205 


the food they offered. And when she saw they were kind 
to the calf, she seemed satisfied. 

The next day Root-digger took a basket of water to Hooker. 
She kicked the basket and spilled the water. She would not 
accept any kindness. Not until she was nearly starved would 
she take the food they offered. 

Brockle-face seemed grateful to the people. When they 
brought her food, she took it from their hands. Her wounds 
soon healed and, although she was shy, she accepted the 
people as friends. When she was troubled, the women 
soothed her by humming sweet songs or by playing their 
bone flutes. 

When Brockle-face cropped all the grass within reach, 
Spin-a-thread said, ‘‘Let’s tether her where there is fresh 
grass.” 

“Use this charm,’’ said Tether-peg as she handed a few 
lumps of salt to Spin-a-thread. 

Spin-a-thread took the salt and dropped a few lumps along 
the way. Brockle-face followed the trail of the salt and so 
the women moved her without any trouble. 

‘‘Hooker needs fresh grass,’’ said Root-digger when they 
had moved Brockle-face. 

‘‘Let her starve,’ cried Drag-a-load. ‘‘She will knock 
you down if you go anywhere near her.”’ 

Hooker went without grass that day, but the following 
day the women tried to move her. It was then that Hooker 
broke away and bounded off like a deer. 

“There she goes!’’ cried Drag-a-load. 

“Let her go,’ said Root-digger. ‘‘She brings us nothing 
but trouble.” 


206 The Early Herdsman 


“There she goes!” 


‘She is glad to be free,” said Spin-a-thread as they watched 
Hooker gallop down the valley. 

‘‘She is free from her tether,” said Drag-a-load, ‘‘but she 
is not free from the wolves.”’ 

“Tf she reaches the herd, she 1s safe,’’ said Spin-a-thread. 

“Tf she doesn’t, she’ll be sorry she broke away,’’ added 
Root-digger. 

‘“A lone cow doesn’t stand any chance in: this land,” 
added Spin-a-thread. 

It was morning when Hooker escaped. Before night the 
men brought her back in a sorry plight. The wolves had 
found her. They had given chase, but the men had res- 
cued her. 


Hooker and Brockle-face 207 


From that day Hooker was changed. She seemed to under- 
stand that the men had saved her. She let the women 
bathe her wounds and she took the food they offered. She 
was never so gentle as Brockle-face, but she dropped many 
of her ugly ways. 

The women milked Brockle-face soon after her wounds 
were healed. They let the calf have its share of the milk 
first, then she let them milk her. 

For some time no one thought of trying to milk Hooker. 
It was Drag-a-load who first spoke of it. ‘Why don't you 
milk Hooker?”’ she asked Root-digger, who had just milked 
Brockle-face. 

“T don’t know,” replied Root-digger. 

‘“You are afraid to try,” said Drag-a-load. 

“T am not,” replied Root-digger. 

‘““Yes, you are,’’ said Drag-a-load. 

“No, I am not,’ repeated Root-digger. 

“Do it, then,’’ said Drag-a-load. 

“T will if you will,’ said Root-digger. 

“You milk her first,’ said Drag-a-load. “If you can’t do 
it, I will try.” 

“Very well,” said Root-digger. ‘I'll try first and if I 
can’t milk her you must try.”’ 

Root-digger pulled a bunch of fresh grass, and Hooker 
took it from her hand. She hummed very softly until Hooker 
was quiet, then she tried to milk her. 

Hooker jumped, and Root-digger found herself sprawling 
upon the ground. 

Drag-a-load laughed at Root-digger’s mishap, but when 
Root-digger said, ‘‘ Now it is your turn,’’ Drag-a-load thought 


208 The Early Herdsman 


it was no laughing matter. But she was no coward, so she 
said, ‘I will milk Hooker.” 

Taking a wild apple in her hand, Drag-a-load fed it to 
Hooker. She stroked her head, she played a flute, then she 
stooped down to milk her. 

Hooker turned around and looked at Drag-a-load with a 
wild look in her eyes. 

Drag-a-load got up and tried once more, and again she 
was left in the lurch. For Hooker stepped this way and 
she stepped that way, and this way and that way until Drag- 
a-load gave up trying. 

Spin-a-thread now came to the camp, and Drag-a-load 
said, ‘‘Hooker’s calf doesn’t need all of her milk. It is 
time we began to milk her.”’ 

“T’m glad you thought of that,”’ said Spin-a-thread. “I'll 
try to milk her now.” 

Spin-a-thread dropped a few lumps of salt on the ground 
near Hooker’s head. She, too, hummed softly as she began 
to milk. 

All seemed to be going well, when suddenly Hooker switched 
her tail into Spin-a-thread’s eyes. 

“Oh, oh!” cried Spin-a-thread as she jumped up and ran 
away. ‘‘That’s enough for me.” 

‘““Waste no more time in trying to please her,” said Many- 
dogs when he heard what had happened. “If you want 
Hooker’s milk, we will help you get it. Come, brothers, let’s 
throw her.”’ 

The men seized Hooker and threw her to the ground. 
They held her fast and called out, ‘‘Come now and milk 
fier.” 


’ 


Hooker and Brockle-face 209 


Now Hooker was down upon her back. She could not 
jump, she could not step, she could n’t even switch her 
tail. But there was one thing she could do that the men 


The men seized Hooker and threw her to the ground 


had not counted on. She could hold up her milk. When 
Spin-a-thread tried to milk Hooker, not one drop could she 
get. 

‘She isn’t a cow, she’s a witch,” said Big-crow. 

But when Tether-peg heard what Hooker had done, the 
wise woman said, ‘‘No, no, Hooker is not a witch. She 
is a mother cow. She didn’t hold up her milk to be ugly. 
She held it to save it for her calf.” 


THINGS TO DO 
Write a story about an ugly cow. Write one about a gentle cow. 
Dramatize thts story. 


210 The Early Herdsmen 


[llustrate one of these lines: 
“Tn this way the wild cow was brought to the camp.” 
““* Fhere she goes!’”’ 
“The men seized Hooker and threw her to the ground.” 


Alsih 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 


Have you ever seen a brindled animal’ If so, what did it look like? 

Can you think of good names for calves? How do you think the 
boys will tame the calves in the camp?’ Which is the better, a rough 
Way or a gentle one? 


How Little-bear and Pick-a-tree Tamed 
the Calves 


‘She is brindled,’’ said Spin-a-thread when she looked at 
the calf the boys had found. 

“What’s that?’’ asked Pick-a-tree. 

‘“‘T know,” said Little-bear. ‘‘See, she has dark streaks. 
That’s why she is brindled.” 

“What is your calf’s name?” asked Spin-a-thread. 

“We have n’t named her,’”’ replied Pick-a-tree. 

“‘Let’s call her Brindle,” said Little-bear. 

‘“Hooker’s calf should have a name,”’ said Spin-a-thread. 

‘‘Let’s call her Brownie,’’ said Pick-a-tree. 

From that day the two calves were called Brindle and 
Brownie. 

When the boys tried to play with the calves, Brindle and 
Brownie pulled their tethers. 

‘“Come here, Brindle!’’ shouted Little-bear. 


How Little-bear and Pick-a-tree Tamed the Calves 211 


Brindle and Brownie pulled their tethers 


‘‘Come here, Brownie!’’ cried Pick-a-tree. 

Brindle and Brownie did not come. Instead they pulled 
on their tethers. 

‘““‘We must make them mind,” said Little-bear, and the 
boys took big sticks and began to beat the calves. 

When Tether-peg saw their rough ways, she said, ‘‘ You 
are too rough. There is a better way. Sit down here by 
Brindle and Brownie and learn to be kind to them.” 

The boys sat down beside Tether-peg. They listened while 
the wise woman charmed the calves with a song. 

“They like it,’ said Little-bear. 

“Sing it again,” said Pick-a-tree. 

“Sing with me,” said Tether-peg. 

The children sang with the wise woman. They sang a 
sweet, low song. When it was finished, Little-bear said, 


’ 


212 The Early Herdsmen 


They frisked, they frolicked about the pen 


‘‘Now they are tame. Untie their thongs. Then we can 
play with them.”’ 

‘‘Oh, do,”’ said Pick-a-tree. ‘‘Let them run. We’ll have 
a fine frolic.” 

‘Brindle and Brownie are still wild,” replied Tether-peg. 
“Tf we don’t keep them tethered, they will run away.” 

‘Would n’t they come back to their mothers?” asked 
Little-bear. 

“They would if a wolf or a bear didn’t get them,”’ replied 
Tether-peg. 

Another day Little-bear asked his mother, ‘‘ May I lead 
Brindle to the hills when we go out to play?”’ 

‘‘She is too wild to lead,’ replied Tether-peg. ‘‘ Wait 
until you tame her. Wait until she comes and goes at your 
beck and call.”’ 


How Little-bear and Pick-a-tree Tamed the Calves 213 


So the boys did their best to tame the calves while they 
were still tethered. Then Tether-peg got the idea of making 
a pen for the calves. She called her sisters and told them 
about it, and they made a pen for the calves. 

“What is this?’’ asked Little-bear when he came home 
and saw the pen. 

“A calf pen,’’ answered Tether-peg. ‘‘Come with me. 
We will lead Brindle and Brownie and put them in the pen.”’ 

Several of the women went with them and they led the 
calves to the pen. It was not easy to lead the calves, but the 
women managed to do it. 

When the calves found that they were free from the tethers, 
they kicked up their heels and ran. They frisked, they 
frolicked about the pen, and the children frolicked with them. 

From this time the boys had a good time playing with 
Brindle and Brownie. - Sometimes they had hard tussles 
with them. Sometimes Brindle and Brownie were contrary. 
Then the boys beat them with big sticks. 

“Stop! Stop!”’ cried Tether-peg, when she saw what the 
boys were doing. ‘‘That is not the way to tame them. 
Win them by kindness.” 

Then the wise woman told the boys how their forefathers 
tamed wild dogs. ‘‘Once they were much like wolves,’’ she 
said. ‘Now they are faithful friends.” 

“Will wolves ever be our friends?”’ asked Little-bear. 

“Who knows?” replied the wise woman. ‘There may 
come a day when even the wolf will be numbered among 
our friends.’ 

“T don’t think so,’ said Drag-a-load, who overheard what 
was said. 


214 The Early Herdsmen 


“But Brindle and Brownie are not very friendly,” said 
Pick-a-tree. 

“Be patient with them,” said Tether-peg. ‘Be gentle, 
be firm, be kind.” 

“Brindle isn’t so bad,” said Little-bear. ‘It’s Brownie 
that is ugly.”’ 

‘Fach calf is like her mother,’ said Tether-peg. ‘‘ Hooker 
is wilder than Brockle-face. Now run and play with 
the calves. Teach them to come at your beck and call.” 

THINGS TO DO 

Sing to some animal and notice how tt acts. 

Dramatize part of this story. 

Illustrate one of these lines: 

“ Brindle and Brownie pulled thetr tethers.” 
“They kicked up their heels and ran.” 
“Stop! stop!’ cried Tether-peg.”’ 


ate ley 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 


Do you think it would be easy to keep many animals tethered near 
the camp? Why, or why not? 

When the goats were tame enough to be set free, where would they 
be likely to go? How did people get the idea of watching the flocks on 
the feeding grounds? 


Tlow the Women and Children Became 
Goatherds 


One day when Pick-a-tree was riding a goat, she reared 
and threw him to the ground. She was out of the camp 
and away to the hills before he could overtake her. 


How the Women and Children Became Goatherds 215 


“Run and help Pick- 
a-tree,”’ called Spin-a- 
thread when she saw 
the boy chasing the 
goat. 

The children ran. 
They helped  Pick-a- 
tree bring the goat. 
back to camp. 

Once several goats - os 
ran off to the hills She was out of the camp and away to the hills 

; ; before he could overtake her 
where they jumped 
from rock to rock. Spin-a-thread saw them and called 
to her sisters, ‘‘The goats have run away! Chase them 
back!” 

When the women were chasing the goats, they came to a 
patch of ripe berries. 

‘‘What nice berries these are!’’ said Drag-a-load. “I wish 
I could stay here and pick them.” 

‘“May we stay and pick the berries?’’ asked Root-digger. 

“Stay,” said Spin-a-thread. ‘“‘Stay and pick the berries. 
The children will help me drive back the goats.” 

When they reached the goats, Tether-peg was there. She 
had been listening to the birds when the goats came to the 
hill. 

“This is good grass,’’ said the wise woman. ‘‘Let the 
goats stay and feed for a while.”’ 

“Won't the wolves get them?” asked Spin-a-thread. 

‘“We must keep watch for wolves and bears,’’ repled the 
wise woman. 


216 The Early Herdsmen 


“Wild goats have sentinels,’ said Little-bear. “‘They 
keep watch for the flock.”’ 
“We took these goats away from their flock,’’ replied 


Tether-peg. ‘‘We took them away from their leader and 
trom: their sentinels.” 
‘‘Let me be their leader,’’ said Little-bear. ‘‘I’m always 


leader when we play we are wild goats.” 

“Try it, Little-bear,” said Tether-peg. “Take Cubby. 
Train her to help you.” 

‘‘May I be sentinel?’’ asked Pick-a-tree. 

“May I?” asked Day’s-eye. 

“T want to be something,” said Birdikin. 

“You may all be sentinels,’ said Tether-peg. ‘Find good 
places to stand and keep watch while the goats 
browse on the hills.”’ 

Everything went so well that day, they took 
the goats out again. After a little they took young 
dogs and trained them to keep watch. 

It was not hard work to watch the goats, although 
goats love to wander. The children had time for 
play. They made whistles and reeds and flutes. 
They used them to signal to the goats and they 
taught the goats to obey. 

Many times the children sang songs. They 
mimicked the singing birds. They mimicked every 
four-footed creature that lived on the table-land. 

One day they saw a big bull fighting with the 
dun bull that led the herd. When the dun bull 
drove the big bull away, the children clapped their 
a flute hands. 


Sa 


How the Women and Children Became Goatherds 217 


‘How does the dun bull keep his place?”’ asked Birdikin. 

“He fights for it.” replied Little-bear. ‘‘He drives other 
bulls away.”’ 

“Rams fight too,’ said Pick-a-tree. ‘‘The best fighter 
leads the flock.” 

One day the children saw a bull punishing 
a cow of the herd. ‘‘What was that cow doing?”’ 
asked Pick-a-tree. 

“She was lagging behind,’’ answered Tether- 
peg. ‘‘ The leader must keep the herd together.”’ 

“The dun bull is wise,’’ said Little-bear. “He 
knows how to take care of his herd.’ iE : 

“The cattle obey him,” said Pick-a-tree. 2 | 
“They follow where he leads.’’ u ¢ 

“What would the cattle do if the leader made : ae 
a mistake?”’ asked Little-bear. ee ® 

‘A leader seldom makes a mistake,” replied Se 
Tether-peg. ‘‘But if he does, he suffers for it. 
Cattle won’t follow a careless leader.” 

‘“That’s the time some other bull gets his 
chance,’’ said Little-bear. 

“You are right,’ said Tether-peg. ‘The 
bull that is nearest and quickest and 
strongest now becomes leader.” ee 

“Then he too will have to fight to keep his place,”’ said 
Little-bear. 

“Yes,” said Tether-peg. ‘‘Unless he is strong and brave 
and wise, he won’t be able to keep his place.” 

“Ts a herd of cattle ever left without a leader?’’ asked 
Little-bear. 


“He fights for wt,” replied Little-bear. ‘‘He drives other bulls away”’ 


How the Women and Children Became Goatherds 219 


’ 


“Sometimes,’’ replied Tether-peg. ‘‘But every herd soon 
gets a leader. Without a leader a wild herd does n’t know 
what to do.” 

No more was said at that time. But all day long out on 
the hills Little-bear kept thinking about what had been 
said. Now and again these words came to him, ‘ Without 
a leader a wild herd does n’t know what to do.” 

“That's true,’’ said he to himself as he sat down on a big 
rock. “If I didn’t keep the goats together, they would 
wander away. They would be killed by wolves.” 

Looking away to a distant hill, he saw a flock of wild 
sheep. The boy wondered what the sheep would do without 
the big ram that led them. And he wondered if he could 
capture a flock if the big ram was not there. 

For some time he was very quiet. He was thinking of 
how he could earn a new name. He was thinking of what 
his mother said about doing his best every day. 

“T know what I can do today,” he thought. “I can take 
good care of the goats. Now I am sure I shall know how 
to earn a new name.” 


THINGS TO DO 


Tell how Little-bear thought he could earn a new name. Do you think 
he could do it? 

If you have ever driven animals, tell how you did tt. 

If you have ever picked wild berrtes, tell a story about tt. 

Make a song you think the children might have made while watching 
the wild goats. 

Dramatize part of this story. 

Illustrate this line: 

“ She reared and threw him to the ground.” 


220 The Early Herdsmen 
SENG 


THINGS TO THINK ABOUT 


Can you think why wolves were once called ‘‘destroyers’’? 
Do you think it was a good thing that people began to tame the grass- 
eating animals? If so, why? 


Lo Whom Do the Flocks and Herds Belong? 


One night when all were about the camp fire, Many-dogs 
complained of the wolves. 

“They are overrunning the land,” he said. ‘If we don’t 
stop them, in a few winters there won’t be a grass-eating 
animal left.”’ 

“The dark forest is full of wolves,’ added Big-crow. 
“Every she-wolf is raising a litter of four or five whelps.’’ 

‘““Let’s track them to their dens,” said Many-dogs. ‘‘Let’s 
kill the she-wolves and their whelps.”’ 

The men tracked the wolves to their dens. They killed 
many wolves and their whelps. But every day wolves came 
from the forest and carried off kids and lambs. Sometimes 
they scattered the sheep. They picked up the lone sheep 
and animals that lagged behind. 

“They tear, they rend, they kill,” cried Many-dogs. ‘‘We 
must stop their work.” 

‘What more can we do than we have done?”’ asked Big-crow. 

‘What more can we do!” repeated Many-dogs. ‘‘We 
can seek the aid of the gods.” 

So the men went to Tether-peg and told her of their troubles. 
And the wise woman asked the god of the woodlands to cast 
a spell on the hunting ground. ‘‘Keep the destroyers from 


To Whom Do the Flocks and Herds Belong? 221 


the feeding grounds,’’ she said. ‘‘Drive them from the 
land.” 

Days came and days went, but the god of the woodlands 
did not drive the wolves from the hunting ground. Every 
day they came from their dens and hunted the flocks 
and herds. 

Again the men went to Tether-peg and told her of 
their troubles. They asked her to use magical arts and 
so drive the wolves away. 

A fresh wolf skin lay 
on the ground. Picking 
it up, the wise woman said, 
Let: the wolt’s eyes be 
closed.’”’ Then she sewed 
up the eyes, and every- 
body thought this would 
keep wolves from seeing 
the herds. 

Next she sewed up the 
ears of the wolf skin, say- 
ing, ‘‘Let the wolf’s ears 
be closed. Let him not 
hear the bleating of the 
flocks. Let him not hear 
the mooing of the cattle.”’ 

Last of all, she sewed q 
up the jaws of the wolf BB’ f 
skin as she spoke these _ ( Crimea 
words: ‘“‘Let the wolf's — : 
jaws be closed. Let him “Let the wolf’s jaws be closed” 


222 The Early Herdsmen 


no longer bite the animals that graze on our feeding 
grounds.” 

Days came and days went, but the magical arts did not 
keep wolves away from the hunting grounds. The wolves 
still saw the flocks and herds, they still heard their bleating 
and mooing, and every day they opened their jaws and bit 
with their sharp teeth. 

A few years passed, and each year wild flocks and herds 
became smaller and smaller. But each year a few wild sheep 
were tethered in each camp. Each year wild goats were 
caught. They, too, were tethered. Lambs and kids were 
raised every year. So, little by little, each clan depended 
more and more on the tethered creatures and less and less 
upon wild game. 

Most of the sheep were kept tethered. Those caught when 
full-grown never became tame. Only the sheep that grew 
up in the camp were tame enough to run with the goats. 

The children sometimes lacked food during these years. 
But each year they helped their mothers tame animals that 
were brought to the camp. 

Each morning Little-bear opened the gate of the pen and 
led the flock out to pasture. Pick-a-tree and all the older 
children always went out as sentinels. 

Each night Little-bear led the flock home. He drove the 
sheep and goats to their pen. He shut the gate so they 
could not get out. 

Many times the boys asked when they could go to take 
training with their uncles. 

At last the day came when their mothers said, ‘The time 
has come. You may go.”’ 


To Whom Do the Flocks and Herds Belong? 223 


So Little-bear, Pick-a-tree and their brothers all went to 
their uncles’ camp. They all were trained to do the work of 
men. All learned their lessons well and when they came 
home they came as men. 

When they arrived at their mothers’ camp, the men were 
greatly troubled. They were complaining about the wolves 
and the falling off of the herds. 

In despair, they called upon Tether-peg. They poured 
out their woes. 

The wise woman then asked them, ‘‘ To whom do the flocks 
and herds belong?”’ 

“They do not belong to the wolves!’’ shouted Big-crow. 
“Tf I have my way the wolves shall not have them.”’ 

“The wolves shall not have them! The wolves shall not 
have them!”’ cried all the people. 

“T wish we might claim them,”’ said Many-dogs. 

‘We can! They are ours,’ cried Tether-peg. ‘It is the 
will of the gods.” 

“T’m glad to hear that,” said Eat-well. “I like the 
tender flesh of young cows.”’ 

‘So do I,” said Do-lttle. ‘The gods are kind. Now at 
last they have given us cows and calves and kids and 
lambs.”’ 

‘‘Shame on you!” cried Tether-peg. 

‘‘Shame! Shame!”’ cried the people, pointing toward Eat- 
well and Do-little. 

‘““We are not destroyers,’ said Many-dogs. ‘We are not 
wolves and bears.” 

“Speak plainly, Tether-peg,’”’ said Spin-a-thread. ‘“‘Speak 
so all can understand.”’ 


“ Shamel Shame! 


°: oe he 


” cried the people, pointing 


t aed Earl and Do-l 


ittle 


To Whom Do the Flocks and Herds Belong? 225 


yy 


“Ves, Tether-peg,’’ added Many-dogs. ‘Speak plainly. 
Tell us what the gods say.” 

“The gods command us to capture the flocks and herds,” 
replied Tether-peg. ‘‘They command us to tame the grass- 
eating animals on our hunting grounds.” 

For a moment the men were silent. They knew not what 
tosay. They dared not disobey the gods. Yet no one knew 
how to go out and capture a whole flock. 

It was then that Little-bear spoke: ‘“‘Let me be leader 
today. If you will do what I say, we shall bring home a 
flock of wild sheep.” 

Some of the men shook their heads. Others had a ques- 
tioning look. After a moment Many-dogs said, “Lead us 
this day. Prove yourself. Earn a new name.’’ 

Little-bear then showed the men just what he wanted 
them to do. They all listened to what he said. All obeyed 
his commands. 

When each one knew his part, Little-Bear led the way to 
the high table-land. There they captured a flock of wild 
sheep. And because Little-Bear took the place of the ram 
that was killed, he was called ‘ Big-ram-of-the-flock.”’ 

The sheep were driven home and penned in. But they 
were not tamed without many a struggle. Some of the sheep 
jumped out of the pen, but most of them were kept together 
and were protected from the wolves. 

From this time there was food enough for all, in winter 
as well asin summer. Besides the milk of the tethered cows, 
they had plenty of ewe’s milk and goat’s milk. The men 
still hunted wild game; but now and again they killed and 
ate some contrary animal of their flock. 


226 The Early Herdsmen 


It was not long before all the boys earned new names. 
Pick-a-tree earned the name ‘‘ Hawk-eye”’ and he grew to be 
a brave man. 

The girls, too, earned new names. Buirdikin earned the 
name ‘‘Lead-a-calf."” Perhaps you can tell why. But Day’s- 
eye kept the name of the little flower that turns its face to 


the light. 
THINGS TO DO 


Tell a story of Little-bear leading the men to capture the wild sheep. 
Show how a pen was made for the sheep. 
Dramatize part of this story. 
Illustrate one of these lines: 
“*To whom do the flocks and herds belong?’ ”’ 
“*Shame! Shame!’ cried the people.” 
“Let me be leader today.’”’ 


THE EARLY HERDSMEN 


part of the Prehistoric period, which followed the melting of the 
glaciers. It is usually referred to as the Neolithic period, or the 
Polished Stone age, to distinguish it from the earlier Pleistocene period 
when the cave-man lived. In the Early Sea People we have shown how 
at this time some people wandered to the sea, where they became fisher- 
men. In this volume it is shown how the prehistoric Aryans of the interior 
overcame the difficulties of the times by changing their attitude toward 
the animals they had hunted and by learning to protect and care for them. 
The appearance of the people under consideration is described in 
Lesson IV. The names given the more important characters are intended 
to throw light on significant achievements of the age. For instance, it 
is stated by the highest authorities that without the aid of the dog, man 
could not have brought the grass-eating animals under his control. It 
thus seems fitting to have the leading man named Many-dogs. The first 
animals brought to the camp were tethered to a tree, a stake, or a peg 
driven into the ground. For a long time the prehistoric Aryans referred 
to the animals under their care as “the tethered”’ or “the fastened”’ 
creatures. The name Tether-peg therefore came to thought as a fitting 
name for the leading woman. It was at this time that people learned to 
take taglocks of wool from the bushes where the sheep pastured and 
convert them into long threads or yarn. They still dressed in the skins 
of wild animals, but since spinning is an epoch-making invention the name 
Spin-a-thread is given to the clan mother. Children who have had 


[ 227 ] 


HE people whose life is portrayed in this volume lived in the early 


228 Suggestions to Teachers 


experiences in dragging and in carrying loads know it is much easier to 
drag a heavy load than to carry it. Such experiences give meaning to 
the name Drag-a-load. 


GEOGRAPHICAL ASPECTS 


The interest in the lessons will be enhanced if the children are given 
opportunity to model relief maps of typical areas presented in the lessons. 
Such maps in sand or clay tend to form the habit of getting clear and 
definite mental images so necessary to accurate thought and adequate oral 
expression. Each typical area may be conceived as a special project, and 
later several may be combined into one large whole. If this be done, the 
children will gain clear conceptions of such geographical features as the 
upper and middle course of a river valley, bottom lands, dense wood- 
lands, open plains, foothills, river trails, mountain pastures of wild sheep, 
and the still higher pastures of the wild goat. If the children in imagina- 
tion go with Many-dogs up the mountain trail past the mountain pasture 
of the wild sheep and the forest line up to the pasture of the wild goat, 
where coarse grass grows among the rocks of the mountain plateaus, they 
will learn more easily the characteristic features of mountains and their 
relations to animals and plants than if given formulated statements 
without the story interest and without the motive power which comes 
from the responsibility of projecting the various features in the form of a 
relief map. At the point in the story when the wise woman points out 
the location of a mountain gap, the children should model a range of 
mountains with a gap, and they should be encouraged to collect pictures 
of mountain gaps as well as other geographical features related to these 
lessons. These, together with the illustrations of the text and those 
drawn by the children, cannot fail to be pleasing and profitable means of 
gaining geographical knowledge. 


ANIMAL LIFE 


Should the children inquire whether the saber-toothed tiger was still in 
existence at the time of the early herdsmen, tell them that that animal, 
together with the cave bear, the big-nosed, the small-nosed, and the 
woolly rhinoceros, no longer lived upon the earth. The musk sheep, the 


Suggestions to Teachers 229 


marmot, and the reindeer had retired to the Arctic regions. <A few rein- 
deer were occasionally seen in Central Europe at this time, but no large 
herds were present. 

The animals most important to man in the Neolithic period were the 
sheep, the cow, and the goat. The bison and the wild horse also were 
present and undoubtedly were hunted by the men; but they have been 
given little if any attention in this story because both have been treated 
in earlier volumes, and the horse will receive further consideration in the 
volume which deals with its domestication. The wild boar and the red 
deer were present in the forests, but the wild hog was not domesticated 
until the latter part of this period. 

Of the grass-eating animals the goat is the most easily tamed, since 
it comes to man willingly for help. Years ago ethnologists believed the 
goat was domesticated in Asia and was brought to Europe in company 
with other domestic animals. More recently, however, ethnologists 
assert that the people of Europe domesticated the grass-eating animals 
they found on their own hunting grounds. Whether the wild goat that 
was tamed in Central Europe was the chamois or Alpine ibex, the Spanish 
ibex, or the Persian wild goat is not positively known. Many have 
believed the Persian wild goat to be the ancestor of all domestic breeds. 
As late as classic times this species was widely distributed, being found 
in the Grecian Archipelago and in the mountains of the Caucasus. Its 
range may have extended to Central Europe in Neolithic times. Be that 
as it may, it is sufficient for the child to know that peoples of Central 
Europe domesticated the wild goat they found on the mountains in the 
Polished Stone age. 

Most American children have seen pictures of the Rocky Mountain 
sheep, but this is not the species domesticated by the prehistoric Aryans. 
They tamed the mouflon, or European wild sheep, and people living as 
far east as Asia tamed the argali, or Asiatic wild sheep, a still larger species. 
Illustrations of each of these species may be found in Webster’s New Inter- 
national Dictionary, as well as in any good natural history. 

The European wild sheep still lives in a wild state in the mountains 
of Corsica and Sardinia, and has been found in Crete and Cyprus and 
most of the islands of the Grecian Archipelago. It ranged over a wider 


230 Suggestions to Teachers 


area in prehistoric times than at present, and was domesticated on the 
hunting grounds of the prehistoric Aryans. This sheep was formerly 
found in Spain, and bears a close resemblance to the famous Spanish 
merino, which doubtless is descended from it. Ewes as well as rams of 
the European wild sheep have horns arching backward. Their outer 
covering is a foxy-red coat of hair, beneath which is an inner coat of fine 
wool. 

The cattle domesticated at this time were those that had been present 
in Europe for thousands of years. They are represented at present by 
the Chillingham cattle, and they are the ancestors of the long-horned 
cattle of Western Europe, Great Britain and Ireland. 

The wolf, the brown bear, and the grizzly were abundant and were 
great enemies of the herds. It was no wonder that the grass-eating 
animals were fast dying out. Man as well as the beasts of prey had 
hunted them for thousands of years. 

Man learned to protect the herds from the beasts of prey before he 
actually tamed individual animals. Such protection was an important 
step in the long and difficult process of domestication. 


ATTITUDE TOWARD NATURE 


Like all primitive peoples the prehistoric Aryans were subject to many 
fears. They did not understand the natural phenomena of the world in 
which they lived. When they saw the sun set, they were never sure that 
it would rise again. When summer departed, and the earth became bleak 
and barren, they were never sure it would return with its bountiful fruits. 
Not understanding the cause of natural phenomena, they naturally 
regarded all forms of plant and animal life, as well as natural objects and 
celestial bodies, as beings somewhat like themselves. The bright sky, 
the sun, moon, and stars, dawn and daylight, as well as summer with its 
warmth and food supply, were regarded as friendly gods. Darkness and 
winter, on the contrary, were regarded as unfriendly to man and at war 
with the life-giving, light-bringing gods they regarded as friends. 

The prehistoric Aryans believed that in a still earlier time all the people 
could talk with the gods, but that in the course of time none but the wise 


Suggestions to Teachers 231 


could corverse with them and thus learn their will. Perhaps it was because 
birds frequently warned the people of danger that they believed the birds 
were wise and knew the will of the gods. For such reasons the man or 
the woman who was thought to understand the language of birds came to 
have a place of authority among all the people. No one dared disobey 
what was said to be the will of the gods. 

Since these people loved light and feared darkness, since they loved 
the genial warmth of summer and dreaded the season of cold, it is quite 
natural that they should do all in their power to bring back dawn and 
daylight and to hasten the coming of summer. To accomplish this they 
built fires and waved flaming torches. They thought that the use of 
such magical arts would produce the desired effect. In an enlightened 
age such practices seem extremely foolish, yet they have been in vogue 
among primitive peoples from that day to this. Possibly the children 
are familiar with the story of the cock that claimed the sun would not rise 
until he crowed each morn. If not, they will enjoy the story of the con- 
ceited Chanticleer. 

One of the most curious beliefs was that the sky was a big skin tent, 
the poles of which rested upon the mountains. The greatest fear of the 
people was that the sky would fall, and that darkness would cover the 
earth. That such a belief was deep-seated is shown in its survival in the 
folk tale of Chicken Little, a story familiar to most children. 

As children see the trouble caused by ignorance of such elementary 
facts as the cause of the seasons and the change from day to night, they 
will better appreciate the value of such knowledge to themselves as weli 
as tomankind. If there were no superstitions in the thought of the world 
today it would be foolish to refer to one. But many superstitions still 
survive side by side with so-called scientific knowledge. Many, too, are 
deeply imbedded in human consciousness. To ignore their presence is 
to let the weeds grow apace in the child’s garden. To recognize them for 
what they are by turning light upon them is to cause them to shrivel up 
and disappear. In this way the channels of thought are cleared of that 
which obstructs; in this manner the way 1s made clear for that which is true. 


Jndustrial and Social Historp Series 


By KATHARINE ELIZABETH DOPP, Ph. D. 
Formerly Instructor and Leclurer in Education, Extension Division of the University of Chicago. 
Author of The Place of Industries in Elementary Education. 


Book I. THE TREE-DWELLERS. Tue Ace or Fear. 


Lilustvated with,a map, 15 full-page and 46 text drawings in half-tone by Howard V. Brown. Cloth, 
Square 12mo, 158 pages. For the primary grades. 
HIS volume makes clear to the child how people lived before they had fire, how and why they conquered 
_ it, and the changes wrought in society by its use. The simple activities of gathering food, of weaving, 
building, taming fire, making use of stones for tools and weapons, wearing trophies, and securing coépera- 
tive action by means of rhythmic dances, are here shown to be the simple forms of processes which still 
minister to our daily needs. 


Book II. THE EARLY CAVE-MEN. Tue Ace or Comsat. 


Illustrated with a map, 16 full-page and 68 text drawings in half-tone by Howard V. Brown. Cloth, 
square 12mo, 183 pages. For the primary grades. 
IN this volume the child is helped to realize that it is necessary not only to know how to use fire, but to 
know how to make it. Protection from the cold winters, which characterize the age described, is sought 
first in caves; but fire is a necessity in defending the caves. The serious condition to which the cave-men 
are reduced by the loss of fire during a flood is shown to be the motive which prompts ihem to hold a 
council; to send men to the fire country; to make improvements in clothing, in devices for carrying, and in 
tools and weapons; and, finally, to the discovery of how to make fire. 


Book III. THE LATER CAVE-MEN. Tue AGE oF THE CHASE. 


Illustrated with 27 full-page and 87 text drawings in half-tone by Howard V. Brown. Cloth, square 

I2mo, 197 pages. For the intermediate grades. 
HERE is portrayed the influence of man’s presence upon wild animals. Man's fear which, with the con- 

quest of fire, gave way to courage, has resulted in his mastery of many mechanical appliances and in 
the development of social codperation, which so increases his power as to make him an object of fear to the 
wild animals. Since the wild animals now try to escape from man’s presence, there is a greater demand 
made upon man’s ingenuity than ever before in supplying his daily food. The way in which man’s cun- 
ning finds expression in traps, pitfalls, and in throwing devices, and, finally, in a remarkable manifestation of 
art, is made evident in these pages. 


Book IV. THE EARLY SEA PEOPLE. First STEPS IN THE 
CONQUEST OF THE WATERS. 


Illustrated with 21 full-page and 110 text drawings in half-lone by Howard V. Brown aud Kyohei Inukai. 
Cloth, square 12mo, 224 pages. For the intermediate grades. 
‘THE life of fishing people upon the seashore presents a pleasing contrast to the life of the hunters on the 
wooded hills depicted in the previous volumes. The resources of the natural environment; the early 
steps in the evolution of the various modes of catching fish, of manufacturing fishing tackle, boats, and 
other necessary appliances; the invention of devices for capturing birds; the domestication of the dog and 
the consequent changes in methods of hunting; and the social cooperation involved in manufacturing and in 
expeditions on the deep seas, are subjects included in this volume. 


Book V. THE EARLY HERDSMEN. First Steps 1n Taminc 


THE GRASS-EATING ANIMALS. 
Illustrated with 24 full-page and 74 text drawings in halj-lone by Howard V. Brown and Louts Jensen. 
Cloth, square 12mo, 232 pages. For the intermediate grades. 
HERE are portrayed the conditions of life, the fears, {he superstitioi.s, the pressure of hunger, the growing 
scarcity of game, which led man to establish friendly relations with the grass-eating animals in order to 
assure himself of an adequate supply of food. The waysand means man devised for the domestication of ani- 
mals are illustrated in these pages and we are shown the beginnings of a new epoch in social progress. 


Write us for detailed information regarding these books and a complete list of our 
up-to-date publications 


RAND M¢ENALLY & COMPANY 


EDUCATIONAL PUBLISHERS 
CHICAGO NEW YORK LONDON 


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Srisarrores 41 
ose uF 


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72E 


THE EARLY HERDSMEN 


571D 


